Harry Potter and the Goblin King
by GeminiFaerie
Summary: While stuck home alone with Dudley, Harry wishes for the Goblin King to take his obnoxious cousin away; instead he gets Draco Malfoy the Goblin Prince, and now he must fight for his own freedom;full summarry inside. Rated M for later chapters dm/hp slash.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

AN: I realized that I left the songs out, so I went back and added lyrics to some of the chapters; the lyrics in the chapter are to "Underground" sung by David Bowie in the movie.

Summary: Harry is stuck at home taking care of Dudley, who is sick. After being annoyed by his cousin, Harry wishes for the Golbin King to take Dudley away; instead, he gets the Goblin Prince, Draco Malfoy. Draco is willing to make a bargain; he will return Dudley without his cousin remembering anything, if Harry will stake his own freedom on solving the Labyrinth. Harry agrees, and so our story begins...

Harry Potter and the Goblin King

_No one can blame you_

_For walking away_

_Too much rejection_

_No love injection._

The girl stood proudly, back straight and no sign of fear in her eyes as she faced the demon who had kidnapped her brother.

"Give me the child," she said, her strong voice ringing throughout the space, "Through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the goblin city to take back the child that you have stolen. For my will is as strong as yours, and my kingdom is great-" **(1)**

"Freak! What are you doing? I'm hungry!" Harry Potter jumped as his cousin bellowed at him from the room next door, "Where is my lunch? You'd better bring it right now or I'm telling!"

"Just a minute," Harry replied sighing as he turned off the movie and walked upstairs to where his cousin, Dudley Dursley, was lying in bed, wrapped in blankets, "What do you want for lunch?"

"I want-"

"Beef stew it is," Harry interrupted, "Good choice, Dudders. I'll be right back." He ignored his stuttering cousin and went down to the kitchen to get lunch. "I can't believe I'm stuck here watching my stupid cousin when I'm supposed to be on that cruise with Hermione and the Weasley's." He growled as he fixed a bowl of stew for Dudley, thinking of all the ways he'd get even with his family once he turned seventeen and was able to use magic outside of school.

This summer was supposed to be the best ever; the Weasley family had won a cruise for the family, and since Bill and Charlie were unable to take time off of work, and Percy was still being a git they had invited Harry and Hermione to join them, figuring that it would be a good way to help him get over the loss of his godfather. Of course, no one knew that Harry had done some research on the veil that Sirius had fallen into, and he was working on a way to get him back...so, yeah, Harry was looking forward to the cruise. Then, Harry's stupid cousin had to get sick the weekend he was supposed to be leaving, the same weekend that his Uncle Vernon had a very important business conference in Italy that Aunt Petunia had to accompany him on, and there was no one to stay with Dudley...so Harry had been ordered to stay home until they returned. Normally Harry would have ignored the command, since he didn't think much of his intolerant relatives, but somehow Dumbledore had heard about the situation, and he told Harry that he was not to leave his relatives house while his cousin was sick. So, now Harry was stuck at home, looking after his whining cousin, and he would be alone on his birthday, again. Sighing, Harry took the food upstairs.

"Well, at least Hermione lent me some movies to watch," he said to himself, "I'm glad I got that television and DVD player fixed. Now, if I could just get Dudley to shut up and stop interrupting me every ten minutes."

"I heard that!" Dudley said, as Harry came back into the room, "You're supposed to be taking care of me, not watching stupid movies. I'll tell Mum and-"

"Just eat your lunch and take your medicine," Harry said. "It's your fault I'm stuck here and I don't feel like listening to you whine for the rest of the weekend. You're not even sick; you just didn't want to be stuck at that stupid business conference this weekend."

"Prove it," Dudley smirked, taking his lunch, "You have no choice but to do what I say; even that freaky headmaster from your freaky school said so. I know it's your birthday tomorrow, and all your friends will be off having fun without you, while you watch stupid movies; what's the matter? You want to go back to your room so you can fantasize about David Bowie being your goblin king?"

"You are so obnoxious!" Harry said, "Merlin, I wish the goblin king would come and take you away, right now!" He turned and stormed out of the room to the sound of his cousins' hysterical laughter. Just as he was about to enter his own bedroom, the laughter stopped and the house went dark. "Dudley?" He called out, "Oh, Diddykins? What are you doing?" He entered Dudley's room again, only to find that it was completely dark. "Okay, Dudley, cut the crap! This isn't funny anymore!" He stormed over to his cousins' bed and pulled back the blankets to find the bed empty. "What the...Dudley? Oh crap; I can't believe I lost my cousin! I am so dead!" A low chuckle sounded in the darkness, and Harry spun around, trying to see who was in the room with him. "Who's there? Show yourself! I'm not scared of you!"

"I didn't expect you to be," a familiar voice drawled, "Of course I also didn't expect to be called on by Harry Potter, the famous savior of the wizarding world."

"Malfoy?" Harry said, "What's going on? Why are you here? And what happened to the lights?" As he spoke, the room became illuminated by a pale silver light, and he could make out the form of Draco Malfoy standing by the window.

"There, is that better, Potter?" Malfoy asked, making sure to stay in the shadows, "as for why I'm here, well I thought it was obvious; you called me."

"Wh-what?" Harry stammered, "I did not call you! All I said was..." his eyes widened in understanding, "I called the goblin king, my cousin disappeared, and then you showed up so that means...you're the goblin king?"

"Of course not," Malfoy scoffed, "I'm the goblin prince; my father is the king, but since I will be taking over for him eventually he sent me tonight. Now-"

"Why are you hiding in the shadows?" Harry demanded, "What are you up to?"

"You are very annoying Potter, did you know that? I was just trying to add a little drama to the situation." Malfoy sighed, but he stepped out of the shadows and moved forward to stand in front of Harry causing the brunette to gasp in astonishment.

Last time he saw Malfoy on the train both boys were about the same height, but now Draco was about six inches taller than Harry, and the outfit Malfoy was wearing- a sheer silver button up shirt and tight black pants that clung to him like a second skin-showed off his lithe, quidditch-muscled body to perfection. Malfoys' hair had always been a pale blonde, almost white, but now it shone silvery in the moonlight, and his eyes were no longer stone grey but an icy blue. To Harry, who had come to realize he liked boys after that disastrous kiss with Cho, Draco Malfoy looked like a sex god.

"See something you like?" Malfoy smirked.

"Just...shut it, git," Harry muttered, fighting a blush, "Can you bring my cousin back, Malfoy?"

"Sorry," Malfoy just smirked some more, "You called on me to save you from your cousin, so he belongs to me now; you should just forget about the stupid muggle."

"Believe me, I'd love to," Harry said, "Unfortunately, my aunt and uncle would kill me if they came back and found out that I sent their precious son to live with the goblins...will he really turn into a goblin?"

"You really are clueless, aren't you?" Draco drawled, shaking his head, "Of course he won't turn into a goblin; you called me without even knowing the truth, didn't you?"

"I didn't think you were real," Harry replied, "I mean, I knew you were real, Malfoy, but I thought the goblin king was just made up by muggles; I watched the movie earlier today-"

"Oh no! Not that piece of trash with David Bowie!" Draco looked scandalized, "That movie is just insulting! I mean, we all know goblins are below wizards, but the stereotypes in that movie are ridiculous. Now, normally I would just skip right to the part where you beg me to release your cousin, and I laugh and taunt you, but I refuse to move any further until you know the truth about my family." He looked around the bedroom and sneered, "Where is your sitting room?"

"The living room is downstairs, but-"

"Well then, Potter, lead the way," Draco interrupted. Harry just glared at him for a moment until Draco raised his eyebrow, and then he sighed, shaking his head.

"Fine, this way," Harry led the blonde downstairs, "I suppose you want some tea as well?" He looked over his shoulder, and stumbled when he found Malfoy just a step behind and almost touching him. When Harry started to fall, Draco grabbed his arm and steadied him, smirking.

"Careful Potter," he let go of the other boys arm, "I would like some tea, at least you are civilized enough to offer." He brushed past Harry to the bottom of the stairs, "So, this is it?" He curled his lip in distaste as he looked around the living room. "Your family has absolutely no taste, Potter. At least now I see where you get your fashion sense, or lack thereof." He looked down his nose, sneering at Harry's outfit. The brunette was wearing a pair of ripped jeans that were held up by a piece of rope, and a grey t-shirt that was practically hanging off his small frame.

"It's not my fault," Harry grumbled, "I have to wear my cousin's old clothes, and if you've seen him you know he is about three times my size."

"Humph," Draco said, moving until he was standing directly in front of Harry, "Well, you look like a beggar. And do you ever even try to brush your hair?" He made as if to ruffle the smaller boys hair, but Harry ducked growling, so Draco snatched the glasses off his face. "You only redeeming feature is your eyes, but of course you hide them behind these hideous glasses; they look much brighter without the glasses, like emeralds..." He raised his hand as if he would touch Harry's face, but then dropped it and walked over to the couch, ploppingdown gracefully. He tossed the glasses back to Harry and, even with blury vision, his seeker skills enabled him to catch his glasses. After he put them back on, Harry just stood there for a moment, lost in thought.

'He looked like he wanted to touch me,' Harry thought, 'That was strange and the way he looked at me, as if maybe he liked me...' He shook his head, 'I was obviously imagining things.'

"Umm…I'll just go get the tea," Harry said, "Be back in a minute." He rushed into the kitchen, leaving Draco alone with his thoughts.

_Life can be easy_

_It's not always swell_

_Don't tell me truth hurts, little girl_

_'Cause it hurts like hell_

'That was close,' Draco thought to himself, 'I almost touched Potter; almost let him know…' He sighed and closed his eyes, 'The Golden Boy of Hogwarts…he would never look at me as anything other than an enemy under normal circumstances, but now…now I have a chance to make him mine.' He smirked, 'All I have to do is get him to accept the challenge of the labyrinth to save his cousin, and then Potter is as good as mine. He will definitely need some new clothes if he is to be seen with me; maybe I can give him a new outfit before he starts his journey? Yes, I think I will, and that will give me another advantage since he will owe me for the favor. It seems things are finally working in my favor, thank Merlin!'

"Here, Malfoy," He opened his eyes as Harry returned with the tea tray and handed him a cup, "It has four sugars in it."

"You know how I like my tea?" Draco raised his eyebrow, "I never knew you cared; oh, and are those blueberry scones? My, my, you have been paying attention to me; does the Weaslette know her boyfriend is attracted to me?"

"I'm not attracted to you," Harry blushed, "and I'm not dating Ginny; she's like a sister to me and she's the only one who knows-" He clapped a hand over his mouth and then took a sip of tea, hoping Malfoy would let the matter drop; he should have known better.

"She's the only one who knows…what? What is the deep, dark secret you've shared with the she-weasel?"

"Don't call her that," Harry glared at him, "Besides, I thought you were going to tell me your story, not the other way around."

"Very well," Draco said, "but I'll find out eventually. Now then, I guess it's time to educate you about my kingdom." He settled back in his chair to get comfortable, and then started his story:

"A very long time ago, certain magical creatures lived in a different dimension; there were centaurs, merpeople, goblins, dwarves, and the Fae, to name a few. Now, the Fae were the most powerful magical beings in the realm, and as such they ruled over the other beings. Eventually, wizards found their way into the realm, and the king of the Fae realm took a beautiful witch for his wife. The king and his new queen had twin sons named Jerriko and Jareth.

When it was time for the king to pass on his crown, he decided to send Jerriko back to the wizarding world and chose Jareth as his successor. Jerriko was jealous of his brother, for he wanted to rule the realm, and so he placed a curse on the crown; whoever wore the crown would be doomed to rule alone, never to find their true love. The king and queen begged Jerriko to remove the curse, but he refused and vanished into the wizarding world, never to be heard from again. Once he was gone, the full extent of his curse became apparent; most of the magical beings left the Fae realm leaving only the Fae and the goblins. In addition, the goblins that remained were changed so that they were little better than animals, blindly following the rulers of the realm, all of their cunning gone. Because of this, the realm soon became known as the Goblin Kingdom, and another facet of the curse was revealed; humans-wizards and muggles alike-now had the power to call on the Goblin King and he had to answer their summons to take away children as asked. Of course, most people did not understand that the Goblin King was real, and wanted to get the children back, so Jareth came up with a way to give them a chance; a magical labyrinth was built, and the petitioners, as we call them, had a chance to when back their child if they solved the labyrinth. If the petitioner was unable to solve the labyrinth, the child would belong to the goblin kingdom forever but they were not turned into goblins; they were merely raised as part of the Fae society, some as servants while others were adopted by members of the court.

For five hundred years Jareth ruled alone, until he was visited by Merlin-yes, the Merlin-who was able to change the curse. Now, if someone called upon the goblin king and they solved the labyrinth, they had the option to remain in the realm as a co-ruler if Jareth agreed. Eventually, a witch came along who was able to solve the labyrinth and she chose to stay as co-ruler with Jareth, and she gave him a son and…well I won't go into details of the family tree, but suffice it to say the crown was passed down through the family until it came to my father. Jareth is my five times great grandfather and once I reach my majority the throne will be passed onto me. Any questions?"

"What about the goblins?" Harry asked, "Are they still…?"

"Yes," Draco replied, "They are still bound as servants to the royal family, and we have not been able to return their…previous personalities to them. There is a prophecy about joining another great wizarding family with mine and finally breaking the curse, but the exact wording of the prophecy was lost long ago so I have no idea what will be required to bring that about."

"Another prophesy," Harry glared, "Prophesies are nothing but trouble." He stood up and walked over to the cupboard under the stairs, leaning his head against the door, "Yeah; I've had more than my fill of prophesies." His mind flashed back to that night at the ministry and he saw it all in his mind's eye once again; the fight for the prophesy, curses flying back and forth, Sirius falling through the veil…"I'll get him back; I swear I will find a way…"

"Get who back?" Harry jumped as Draco spoke from right behind him, "What has you so upset?"

"It's nothing," Harry said, walking back over to the couch, "So, what do I have to do to get my worthless whale of a cousin back?" Draco shook his head.

"Forget the muggle," he said, "he is already in my realm and-"

"Let's just cut the bull shit," Harry interrupted, "I already know there's a way to get him back, so just tell me the rules so we can get this mess taken care of; my cousin hates all things magical, so trust me-you don't want him in your kingdom any longer than absolutely necessary."

"Well, when you lose I will be stuck with him anyway," Draco retorted, sitting next to Harry on the couch.

"I won't lose," Harry said, amused, "I have never lost to you, and I don't intend to start now."

"Very well," Draco smirked, completely ignoring the insult, "Since you never lose, let's change the stakes, shall we?"

_But down in the underground_

_You'll find someone true_

_Down in the underground_

_A land serene_

_A crystal moon._

"What did you have in mind?" Harry asked wearily.

"Oh, nothing much," Draco replied, "Just instead of fighting for your cousins freedom, how about _your_ freedom being the prize?"

"What?" Harry squeaked, "My freedom?"

"Yes," Draco said, "I will open the doorway to the goblin realm and you will have a certain timeframe to solve the labyrinth and make your way to my castle, where you will find another door back to this realm. If you win, you are free to come back here or you may remain in my realm as a free subject or advisor; it's your choice. If, however, you fail to solve the labyrinth in the time allotted you will become my…"

"Your…what?"

"Well, basically just mine," Draco said, giving Harry a look that made his cheeks flush, "Either way, if you agree to my terms I will release your cousin immediately and he will have no memory of this experience."

"Just out of curiosity," Harry began hesitantly, "If, by some strange twist of fate I happen to lose to you, will I still be able to return to Hogwarts?"

"Of course," Draco said, "I don't want some un-educated cretin in my castle."

"And you won't turn me over to your father? Or Voldemort?"

"No; if you don't solve the labyrinth you will be mine, and no one will be able to take you from me," Draco explained, "The challenge of the labyrinth is a combination of wizard and fae magic, and it is too strong to be broken by anyone alive today-including the Dark Lord and your precious Dumbledore."

"He's not my Dumbledore," Harry glowered, "He's a lying, manipulative, barmy old man."

"Hmm, I quite agree," Draco said, "but what changed your mind about your hero?"

"He has been keeping important things from me from day one," Harry replied angrily, "If he had only told me the truth, maybe I wouldn't have gone to the ministry that night…and maybe Sirius wouldn't have fallen through the veil." He shook his head again, "It doesn't matter though; just know that I am no longer Dumbledore's' puppet. So, what makes you think I am crazy enough to risk my freedom in the labyrinth?" Draco was surprised by the change in topic, and it took him a moment to answer.

"As you said, you've never lost to me before; maybe you're worried that you won't get luck this time?" He challenged, "After all, this time you will be on your own; everyone knows you can't accomplish anything without your little groupies."

"Fine," Harry said, eyes glittering, "I accept your terms; you release my cousin and I will take on your labyrinth."

"Excellent," Draco grinned, and Harry was taken aback by how attractive it made the blonde look, "Here is the contract; once you sign it we can begin." Harry looked at the contract and then read it out loud.

"I, Harry James Potter, do hereby accept the challenge of the labyrinth; in exchange for the return of my cousin, Dudley Dursley, I agree to have my freedom be the prize. If I am able to solve the labyrinth within the allotted time I will have my freedom and the choice to return home or remain in the Fae Realm as a free subject or advisor. If, however, I should fail to solve the labyrinth, my freedom will be forfeit, and my life, freedom and magic, along with all that I am and all that I own will belong to Draco Lucius Malfoy. I understand that this contract is legal, binding and irrevocable." He looked at Draco and accepted the quill the other boy offered.

"This is a blood quill," Draco told him, "It is part of what makes the contract binding; once you sign it, I will add my own signature."

"Why do I have a feeling I am going to regret this?" Harry took a deep breath and signed the contract, watching as his signature shone bright red for a moment before drying to become a dark reddish-brown. Without another word, Draco took the quill and the contract and wrote at the bottom, in elegant script, "I, Draco Lucius Malfoy, do hereby agree to abide by the above terms" before adding his signature.

"Here," Draco pulled out a healing salve and handed it to Harry after applying it to his own hand, "This will prevent it from scarring up." Harry accepted the salve bemusedly.

"It doesn't really matter," he said, applying the salve, "I already have scars from last year anyway, what's one more?"

"Let me see," Draco grabbed his hand and frowned at the faint scars," 'I must not tell lies'? Umbridge did this, didn't she? When?"

"Every time I had detention she made me use her blood quill," Harry replied, "It's really not important. Now, can we get on with this?" He tugged on his hand and Draco dropped it, somewhat reluctantly.

"Of course," Draco said, "Follow me." He led Harry through the house to the back door, pausing to smirk at the brunette before opening it, "I hope you're ready, because there is no going back." Draco opened the door and Harry gasped…

_It's only forever_

_Not long at all_

_Lost and lonely_

_That's underground_

_Underground…_

******************************************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note*****************************************************************************

**Okay, so here's the first chapter; what do you think? All opinions are welcome, and any flames will be used for smores! ^_^ I will have the next chapter up ASAP. Oh, and as for Draco's comment about the Labyrinth movie with David Bowie? He's insane; of course it's a great movie-one of my faves! Until next time! 3**

**(1)Quote from the original Labyrinth movie.**


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

Draco opened the back door and Harry gasped in astonishment. In place of the perfectly manicured back yard he saw a beautiful landscape unlike anything he had ever seen before. The sky was a clear brilliant blue without any clouds, and he was standing in a field of wildflowers with a forest to the east, mountains in the north and west with a silver stream running throughout the land.

"Um, Malfoy…why is the grass purple? And do those trees have blue leaves?"

"Because this is a magical realm," Draco replied, "Over time the landscape has been changed to look the way members of the royal court want it to look; therefore many places are colors that you won't find back in the other realm. We are standing in Amethyst Fields, and that is Blue Forest; the Silver Steam winds throughout this realm."

"That's amazing," Harry breathed, not really paying attention to Draco as he looked around. In the distance he spotted an intimidating labyrinth, and beyond that was a large castle that glittered in the sunlight. "Is that the castle beyond the Goblin City?"

"Yes," Draco said, "That is my castle; get a good look at it, Potter; when this is over it will be your new home." This was enough to break Harry's trance and he turned to glare at Draco.

"In your Dreams, Malfoy," he scoffed, "I have no intention of losing to you-now or ever. So, why don't you tell me the rules so I can best you again?"

"Very well," Draco smirked, "Just remember, you're on my turf now; this isn't just my home-this is my kingdom." He scowled when Harry's only response was to roll his eyes. "Fine; the rules are as follows: You cannot use you wand. You have 13 hours to solve the labyrinth and make your way to the door in my castle which is connected to the human realm. You may accept help from any of the denizens in my realm, but be aware that not everyone here is trustworthy. If you fail to solve the labyrinth within 13 hours, you will remain here-and no arguing about it when you lose; I hate a sore loser."

"Well you don't have to worry about that because I have no intention of losing," Harry replied.

"I'm not done," Draco said reproachfully, "Also, if you give up at any time you automatically lose. And, finally you are not to kill or cause any permanent damage to any of my subjects; is that clear?"

"Yes," Harry said, "I understand. Is there anything else?"

"There is one other thing," Draco said, "Those clothes you're wearing are simply hideous; before the challenge starts I would like to give you a new outfit."

"What's the catch?" Harry demanded

"No catch," Draco said, "You would just owe me a forfeit at a later date."

"You must think I'm stupid," Harry laughed, "There's no way I'm going to accept a set of new clothes in exchange for giving you an un-named forfeit. Either name your price or drop it."

"You're no fun," Draco pouted, but his eyes held a mischievous glint, "Very well; your forfeit will be…a kiss. At some time in the next 13 hours I will ask for a kiss from you, and you must pay the forfeit. And, it has to be a real kiss, not just a peck; otherwise I will be allowed to claim another forfeit which will be named at that time." Harry hesitated a moment, biting his bottom lip as he considered the offer.

'Is it worth it?' Harry pondered, 'A kiss for new clothes…a kiss with _Malfoy _in exchange for new clothes. He hasn't done anything to me since he showed up about an hour ago, but then again he's probably able to be nice because if he wins I will belong to him…which means I might have to kiss him eventually anyway. No! I can't think like that! I will win! So, back to the original question; is a new outfit worth having to kiss Malfoy? This outfit is pretty ragged, and I really hate being stuck in Dudley's old things...'

'Mmmm, those lips look positively delicious,' Draco thought, licking his own lips, 'I can't wait to taste them. Before this night is over, Harry will be mine. All the things I can do once he belongs to me…and I won't have to worry about the Dark Lord either; once Harry is mine we will have enough magic to defeat the Dark Lord once and for all. Actually, with Harry by my side I can rule the world…both worlds! Yes! I can be the new Dark-'

"Okay," Harry said, interrupting his train of thought, "I'll take the new clothes in exchange for a kiss."

"Thank Merlin!" Draco said, "It was driving me crazy to see you walking around in those rags! Now, let's see…what would you look good in?" He walked around Harry appearing to be deep in thought, "Nothing too light; you definitely look better in dark colors…"

"Make it something that won't hinder me in the labyrinth too," Harry spoke up, but Draco seemed to ignore him.

"I know; how's this?" Draco waved his hand as he spoke and Harry found himself wearing a pair of black dragon hide boots, black slacks, and a long-sleeved, emerald green button up shirt.

"I'll get too hot in this," Harry protested, "Can't I wear jeans and a t-shirt?"

"Don't be ridiculous," Draco scoffed, "I will not allow you to be seen wearing jeans. However, I suppose I can change the shirt." He waved his hand again. "There; is that better?" He had changed the shirt to a short-sleeved silver button up with a soft emerald green tank-top underneath.

"Now I look like a Slytherin," Harry grumbled, "but I suppose it will do. What is this made of?" He ran his hand over the tank-top, "It looks like silk, but it's really soft…"

"It comes from silk sheep," Draco replied, "They can only be found in this realm."

"Oh," Harry said, looking suddenly nervous, "So, I guess you want that kiss now?"

"No," Draco smirked, "I'll wait; I have 13 hours to claim my kiss and I plan to wait until we are in a more appropriate setting."

"You mean you're waiting until it will get you a bigger advantage," Harry said drily and Draco smiled, "So, when does my time start?"

"About ten minutes ago," Draco replied, "It started the moment you entered this realm."

"What?" Harry cried, "But that's not fair! You didn't tell me…and you wasted time on my clothes!"

"And now you are wasting more time by arguing," Draco pointed out, "Not that I really mind, of course, it's just that I expected you to at least make an effort to solve the labyrinth."

"You are a slimy git," Harry glared at the blonde, "A sneaky, snaky, slimy git. But that doesn't matter; I will still solve the labyrinth in thirteen hours-it's far too easy."

"Well I wouldn't want you to be bored," Draco said and pointed to a grandfather clock that Harry hadn't noticed before. As he watched the hands spun around, and Draco reduced the time to eleven hours.

"Hey!" Harry protested, "You can't do that! Our contract said thirteen hours, and you can't go back on the contract!"

"If I was just doing it to be spiteful then no, I wouldn't be able to reduce the time," Draco said, "However, since you were complaining about this being too easy, I simply gave you more of a challenge. Now, you may want to get started; the clock is ticking. I'll see you later…Harry." He purred the last word and laughed as Harry blushed, then he faded out of sight, leaving Harry to glare at the clock and plan revenge against the sexy slytherin.

"Well, I guess I'd better get started," Harry sighed, "And I need to stop thinking of Malfoy as a "sexy slytherin"; it's just wrong!" He shook his head and walked across the field towards the labyrinth without encountering any problems, although he did almost stumble into a fairy ring; in his defense it was really hard to see the circle of violets among all the purple grass. After about thirty minutes of walking, Harry came upon a large crystal fountain standing in front of the gates to the labyrinth; he thought he heard laughter, but there was no one in sight. Shrugging, Harry examined the gates; they were made of some type of shiny black stone which he guessed was onyx, with purple and blue stones arranged in a labyrinthine design about midway up and silver handles with two emeralds on each. Harry tried pushing on the gate, and then pulling the handles but it wouldn't move.

"Idiot," he spun around to see a short humanoid figure with brown hair and beady blue eyes scowling at him, "You'll never get in that way."

"Oh?" Harry raised an eyebrow, "And who are you?"

"The name's Ystan and 'fore you ask, I'm a dwarf," he said, "Now, who might yeh be?"

"Harry," he replied, "What do you want?"

"I wanted ter offer my help," Ystan said, "Thought yeh might need it ta get in."

"Thanks, but I think I can handle it," Harry turned back to the gates and examined the handles again before smiling and shaking his head. "And once again you underestimate me, Malfoy," he said quietly, "Or maybe you forgot I'm a parseltongue? Either way, I'm disappointed." He stared at the silver handles, which were actually serpents with emeralds for eyes, and hissed "Open." He frowned when nothing happened, but tried again. "I command you to open," he hissed and the emeralds on the door flashed once before the gate began to open, and Harry grinned triumphantly before turning to Stan. "So, yeah; thanks for the offer of help, but-as you can see-I can handle it. Bye Ystan!" He gave a little wave and walked through the gateway, entering the labyrinth.

"Huh, this looks just like in the movie," Harry mused, looking left and right, not seeing any turns in the labyrinth, "The walls look really slimy…I wonder what type of moss that is? Neville could probably tell me, unless it's specific to this realm. Now, do I have anything in my pockets to help me out?" He searched through his pockets and pulled out a two black markers, a handful of cough drops, the knife Sirius had given him for Christmas, and his invisibility cloak. "That's strange; I know all the rest of this was just transferred from my other pants pocket, but how did my cloak get here? Well, it's bound to come in handy, so I'm not complaining; it's nice to have magically enlarged pockets too." Shrugging, Harry put everything back in his pockets except for one of the markers.

"Yeh haven't gotten very far," Harry spun around to see Ystan smirking at him, "I guess yeh'll be wantin' my help now, eh?"

"No, thank you," Harry replied, "I haven't even started yet; I know better than to just rush in…"his voice trailed off and he muttered to himself, "even if rushing in is more exciting; stupid Hermione! Always making me think!" He pouted and then remembered the dwarf watching him, "Anyway, I don't trust you; you're obviously working for Malfoy-er, the Prince, so I think I'll do this by myself. Have a nice day, Ystan!" And with that he turned his back on the dwarf and began walking down the passageway. After about ten minutes Harry turned around and saw that he was alone. "Good, now I can get started." Harry moved closer to the wall on his right and tilted his head to look at it at an angle, trying to find any breaks in the wall.

Harry spent the better part of an hour examining different parts of the wall, even running his hand along it, but could not find any openings.

"Malfoy, you cheating scum!" He yelled, "How am I supposed to solve this thing when you've got me blocked in without any openings? Stupid wanker!" He threw his marker on the ground in frustration, and was surprised when he heard a click and one of the paving stones in front of him moved to reveal a stairway leading down. "Oh," Harry picked up his marker, "I guess it was stupid of me to expect this to be just like the movie. Although, this does prove my point to Hermione that things work out better for me when I'm impulsive." Shrugging, Harry made his way down the stone stairs and was soon surrounded by darkness. "Hmm, I can't see anything," he murmured, "Blindly walking down stairs in the dark is probably not the smartest thing I've ever done, but without my wand-or a flashlight-what can I do?" He trailed his left hand along the cool, damp wall as he carefully walked down, feeling for each step before moving.

After a few moments, Harry noticed that the stairs were now leading him back up, although he had no idea when the change in direction had occurred. After climbing for what seemed like hours, Harry hit his head on something solid, and felt around until he was able to push the stone above him out of his way. Once he climbed out of the hole, he found himself in a maze of hedges that reminded him of the tri-wizard tournament and he groaned.

"Great," He said, "I hope Malfoy didn't put any blast-ended skrewts in here…then again he would have had to get those from Hagrid, so I'm pretty sure I'm safe on that front." He looked around for a moment, trying to decide which path of the three paths he should take. Directly in front of him was path illuminated by moonlight and lined with flowering plants, while the path to his right was bathed in a golden light reminiscent of the sun and lined with rosebushes and tall trees. The final path to Harry's left was shrouded in shadows, and he could just make out the forms of some dark, twisted trees before the path disappeared into a silvery mist. Eyeing all three paths suspiciously, Harry tried to reason out which path would be the safest to take. He shook his head at the sunny path, muttering that it looked too inviting and so it must be a trap. That left him with either the moonlit path or the shadowy one, and he was having a hard time deciding between the two; Harry really didn't like the look of the shadowy path, but then again he didn't exactly trust the moonlit path either.

"Hello Harry," he spun around at the dreamy, sing-song voice and saw the last person he expected.

"Luna? What are you doing here?" The fairy-like blonde girl gave him a sweet smile and took his hand in hers.

"I'm here to help you of course, silly," she giggled, "The snarky snifflepods told me you could use some help."

"Well, it's good to see you," Harry said, "but how did you get to Malfoy's realm?"

"Oh, I live here," Luna replied, her eyes wide in surprise, "My mother was part fae, and so am I. During the summer I stay with my relatives here. I am very glad to see you, though; there's nothing like a good friend." She gave his hand a small squeeze, and Harry smiled down at the younger girl, but then frowned.

"You know, if I don't solve the labyrinth I have to stay here with Draco Malfoy," he told her, and Luna nodded.

"I know," she said, "That's why I'm here; I knew you would need someone to make sure things turn out correctly. Now, which path were you considering?"

"Either the moonlit path or the shadowy one," Harry replied, "I just think that Dra-er, Malfoy would try to trick people by making the correct path look the least inviting; most people would be scared to go down the shadowy path. Am I right? Is that the correct one?"

"Hmm, I'm not sure," Luna said thoughtfully, "I do know that the sunlit path is wrong-it's filled with blibbering humdingers, and they would just distract you; yes, we should try your path. Come along, Harry!" She tugged gently on Harry's hand and they started down the shadowed path, not noticing the smirking dwarf who watched them go…

In the Goblin King's castle…

Draco smiled and hummed to himself as he returned to the castle and sought out his parents. After a few moments of searching he found them, along with a group of nobles, in one of the guest chambers in the west wing of the castle.

"Hello Father, Mother," Draco bowed to Lucius and kissed Narcissa's cheek, "The petitioner has begun the labyrinth."

"Very good," Lucius nodded, "Although, I am disappointed at the offering this time; I cannot imagine this one ever fitting in with our people." He put an arm around Draco's shoulder and led him to the bedroom door. Pressing a hand to the door a viewing window appeared and Draco saw what must be Harry's cousin, only he was the complete opposite of the brunette he had left in the labyrinth. Where Harry was on the shorter side-about 5'6"- with messy black hair and brilliant emerald eyes, Dudley Dursley was closer to Draco's height of 6 foot, obese and had short blonde hair and watery blue eyes. Currently, Dudley was screaming at the top of his lungs, something along the lines of "Let me go you stupid freaks! Harry! I'm telling Mummy and Daddy and you're going to be in so much trouble!"

"Ugh!" Draco sneered, "I can see why he wanted this…creature taken. Don't worry though, Father, I made a different deal with the petitioner; instead of rescuing his cousin, the boy will be solving the labyrinth to try and gain his own freedom. The deal I made with him is that we will send the cousin back home and completely wipe his memory."

"Thank Merlin!" Narcissa smiled at her son, "I despaired of having to deal with this creature; since he arrived he has done nothing but scream about magic and call us freaks. Let us retire to the sitting room; a servant shall send him back, so there is no reason for us to listen to his ravings for another moment." She slipped her arm through Draco's and allowed him to escort her out of the room. "So, darling, how did it go?"

"Very well Mother," Draco smiled, "I am pleased with the petitioner; he is a wizard, which should make things interesting. Oh, Father?" As they entered the sitting room he looked at Lucius, who was busy talking to Lord Parkinson, Pansy's father.

"Yes, Draco?" Lucius sat down on the couch with Narcissa, while Draco and Lord Parkinson each sat in an armchair.

"This boy, when he fails to solve the labyrinth I get to decide his fate since I set the labyrinth for him, right?" Draco met his father's gaze and Lucius nodded.

"Of course son," Lucius replied, "On my honor as Goblin King this new petitioner is yours to do with as you wish. Why, do you know the boy?" He looked at his son curiously.

"Yes," Draco replied, "but before I tell you who it is, I need your word that you won't interfere with the labyrinth or his fate afterwards in any way."

"Very well," Lucius agreed, "I swear upon my throne and my life that I will not interfere in anyway with this labyrinth challenge or the fate of the petitioner. Now, son, who is it?"

"Harry Potter," Draco smirked at his parents shocked expressions, "After all these years, I finally have the boy-who-lived at my mercy; I eagerly await the time when he fails to solve the labyrinth and becomes mine."

"You have Harry Potter?" His father demanded, "Excellent work, Draco! We must tell-"

"No!" Draco interrupted, "He is mine, Father; you swore upon your crown that I could do as I wish in this matter, and I do not wish the Dark Lord to know about him."

"Your son is a traitor to the cause, Lucius," Lord Parkinson spoke up, "Are you a traitor as well? Not telling the Dark Lord that you have Harry Potter at your mercy can be considered treason and-"

"That is enough," Lucius interrupted, "The laws of this realm are not the same as the laws in Britain; I swore an oath and if I break it then I will die. Leave this matter to me; I will talk to my son, and we have until the time runs out to alert our lord. In the meantime," He quickly pulled out his wand and pointed it at Lord Parkinson, "Obliviate!" Lord Parkinson blinked for a moment and then smiled at Lucius and Draco.

"So, about the betrothal, I can have the paperwork drawn up tonight, is that acceptable?" Parkinson asked Lucius.

"What betrothal?" Draco demanded, "Father you know I can only wed someone who has gone through the labyrinth."

"That is not true, son," Lucius smirked, "You can marry anyone you-or rather I- choose, they just won't be your co-ruler in the realm; however a marriage to Pansy Parkinson will guarantee you heirs in the wizarding world. I hope you don't intend to fight me on this, Draco."

"I don't want to marry Pansy," Draco objected, "You can't do this to me! You know that if I marry her I will never truly be happy; it's the curse of our family! Would you really force me into this?"

"It's for your own good," Lucius stated, "Your mother and I have discussed this-"

"Lucius, Darling," Narcissa interrupted, "Draco just turned sixteen; it will be another year before he can even sign the betrothal papers legally-why don't we wait to discuss this until after Po-the petitioner solves-or fails to solve-the labyrinth? Draco really shouldn't have any distractions right now, especially since this is his first time overseeing the challenge." Lucius glared at his wife for a moment, before nodding his agreement.

"Very well," he turned to Draco, "We will discuss this matter in two days; this will give you time to reflect upon the matter. Also, at the end of that time we will discuss your service to the Dark Lord; you are old enough to be of use to him in the next school year."

"Yes, Father," Draco gritted his teeth and stood up, "Now, if you will excuse me, I think I should check on his progress." He bowed to his parents and gave a brief nod to Lord Parkinson before storming out of the room.

***************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note********************************************************************************************** Okay, so there's chapter two! Who knew Luna was a member of the Fae court? And, who thinks Harry can trust her? I'm not giving away any secrets, but I have my plans. (Insert diabolical laughter here.) As for updates, my goal is once a week. Also, thanks everyone for the kind reviews; they encourage me to continue ^_^**


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

AN: Just a quick note here; I made a small change to chapter one by removing the conversation about Harry's sexuality because I think that it fits better in this chapter. Also, I may not post a new chapter every day, but I do read through my previous chapters while I am working on new chapters, so I may make small changes occasionally. Now, on with the story!

Once in his own chambers, Draco slammed the door and threw himself on his bed. His bedroom was his only sanctuary, the one place that no one-not even Lucius-would enter without his permission. The floor was dark wood, covered with a soft rug done in swirls of dark blue, silver, and emerald green; his bed was a large four-poster made of cherry wood with black curtains, a midnight blue bedspread, and green and silver throw pillows. Against one wall as a cherry wood desk with a matching chair, the seat upholstered in midnight blue silk, another wall was completely lined with bookcases full of knickknacks, pictures, and-of course-books, with a couple of chairs and a small reading table. His windows were framed with dark blue curtains, and overlooked his favorite garden.

After lying on his bed for a few minutes, Draco gave a heavy sigh and moved over to one of the windows. Pressing a hand to the glass, the scenery before him changed; instead of looking down at the sunlit gardens, he saw Harry standing at the entrance to the hedge maze, obviously unable to decide on a path to take. Over to the side, Draco spotted one of the dwarves keeping an eye on the brunette, and Draco smiled, then frowned as a new figure came into view.

"What is Lovegood doing with Harry?" he murmured, and then scowled when she took his hand, "She had better not be trying to make a move on him; Harry is mine." He watched as Harry and Luna talked for a few minutes, gesturing at the different paths, and then smirked when they chose the shadowy path. "You have to love that Gryffindor bravery," he laughed, "I knew he would chose that path; he's too suspicious by far, but that works for me!" Normally, the most intimidating path would be the shortest path to the center of the labyrinth, since most people would avoid it at all costs; however, Draco had spent years watching Harry Potter and knew his personality-he knew that Potter would choose the darkest path and so added more tricks, traps, and puzzles to keep the Gryffindor occupied. Smiling happily, Draco summoned one of his comfy chairs and sat down facing the window-turned-viewing screen, and then summoned a goblin to bring him a late lunch and some wine. Sighing in contentment, Draco sipped his wine and watched as Harry and Luna traversed the shadow path.

At first, not much happened; they came across a grove of trees hung with shadow vines, but when the plants attacked Luna waved her wand and turned them into purple sparkly scarfs; next there was a pit of snakes, but all Potter had to do was hiss at them for a few moments and they moved out of the way-damn Potter for being a bloody parselmouth! How could he have forgotten that Harry could speak to snakes? Then, they came upon a Sphinx, and Luna was able to solve the riddle with no problems. Draco sighed again, this time in frustration, and contemplated getting Luna out of the way; it wasn't fair for him that Luna had a wand-most of the obstacles could be overcome by a well-placed spell, which is why he told Potter not to bring his wand. No, he should probably wait to get Luna out of the way; she could be useful later on. Besides, Draco smirked, there were still many other traps on the path, and Harry was bound to fall into one of them any minute now…

"This has been too easy," Harry confided to Luna once they had passed the sphinx, "I mean, we've come across three obstacles, and managed to get past them with almost no effort; meeting the shadow snakes was actually fun! Either there's something really nasty up ahead, or Draco has seriously underestimated me."

"Hmm, it has been rather easy," Luna agreed, "Then again, I'm sure the prince didn't expect to see me here; I used the blibbering humdingers to confuse him."

"It's true that those vines probably would have given me a lot more trouble if I had been by myself since I don't have my wand," Harry conceded, "but still…something bad is ahead of us, I can just feel it."

"You worry too much," Luna laughed, "I have faith in you Harry; we'll make it through this. Oh, look!" She pointed to where the path split, "A crumple-horned snorkack! I have to get a picture of it for Daddy!" Before Harry could stop her, Luna took off skipping down the right-hand path, leaving him with no choice but to follow.

"Luna!" He called, running after the blonde girl, "Luna; wait for me!" It should have been an easy matter for him to catch up to the slight girl, but within seconds he had lost her to the mist covering the path. After a few moments, Harry ran straight into a thick cloud of fog and came to an abrupt stop, looking around to try and get his bearings. He took off his glasses and cleaned them, but he still wasn't able to see anything; the fog surrounding him was just too thick. "Luna!" His voice sounded muffled as he took a carful step forward, "Luna; where are you!" He heard a giggle up ahead and took a few hesitant steps in that direction. "Luna?" he called uncertainly, "Answer me Luna, please!" He continued to move forward at a slow pace, stopping occasionally to listen; anytime he stood still for too long he would hear that girlish giggle in front of him, but it was starting to unnerve him a little.

'This is not good,' Harry thought to himself, 'I'm surrounded by a deep mist, and I lost the only friend I have in this realm. What else can go wrong?'

"Looks like yeh lost yer friend," Harry started in surprise as the mist cleared a little to reveal Ystan standing in front of him, a self-satisfied smirk on his face, "I know where she is; guess yeh'll be needin' my help after all."

"What do you want?" Harry demanded, "I'm really tired of you showing up all the time, and I don't want your help, so go away."

"Yeh'll never git the girl back that way," the dwarf sneered, "Yeh need me and-" He was cut off as Harry grabbed him by his collar and slammed him into a tree.

"I'm not playing any games with you," Harry growled, "Luna is my friend, and if you know what's good for you you'll tell me where she is. You have five seconds before I call my friends the shadow snakes over here and give them an early supper."

"Yeh wouldn't dare," Ystan glared at him, "I know all about yer contract; if yeh kill me yeh automatically lose to Prince Draco."

"Do I look like I care?" Harry asked, "I will do whatever I have to in order to save Luna." He glared at the dwarf for another moment, and then began hissing. _"Ssshaolin; I need your help, my friend." _After a few moments there was a loud rustling sound, and a large shadow snake appeared; it was black with silver eyes and a grey diamond pattern on its back. She quickly slithered up Harry's arm to wrap around his shoulders. _"Hello Ssshaolin, I'm sssorry to disssturb you."_

"_It'ss okay, Friend of Sssnakessss," _the larger snake with silver eyes replied, _"How can I be ssserviss?"_

"Yeh can't do this!" Ystan protested, "Let me go, damn you! Prince Draco-"

"Is not here right now," Harry interrupted, "So, are you ready to tell me where my friend is?" He took a moment to hiss at Shaolin again, and she slithered off Harry's shoulders to wrap her coils around Ystan, effectively trapping him. _"If he doessn't give me the information I need, you can have him for dinner," _Harry said, _"He did sssomething to my friend-"_

"_The blonde girl?" _Shaolin demanded, and hissed angrily when Harry nodded an affirmative, _"If the little moonbeam iss hurt thisss one ssshall sssuffer!"_

"Okay!" Ystan cried, losing the gruff accent he had previously been speaking with, "I'll tell you where the girl is! Just call off your pet!"

"She's not my pet," Harry corrected, "Shaolin here is a friend of mine-and a friend of Luna as well; she's not very happy about you hurting Luna. If you tell me where she is right now, Shaolin might agree to let you go."

"What are you doing to my subject, Potter?" Harry briefly looked away from the dwarf to see Malfoy leaning nonchalantly against a tree, but he quickly returned to the task at hand.

"Go away, Malfoy," he said dismissively, "I'm busy here. Now Ystan, you were saying?" The dwarf looked over at his Prince, but then gasped as Shaolin tightened her coils. "Don't look at him; answer me or Shaolin will inject you with her venom-" here Shaolin obligingly opened her mouth in a wide hiss, showing off her fangs with a drop of venom on them, "-before 'Prince Malfoy' can save you. Now, for the last time, Where. Is. Luna?"

"She's just a little further on down the path!" Ystan cried, "I didn't hurt her; I swear! I just tricked her into getting trapped in a cage; it's hanging right over the path and there are pixies illuminating the cage, so you'll be able to see her! Now please; let me go!"

"Well, that's up to Shaolin here," Harry said, before consulting with the snake. _"He sssayss that Luna iss sssafe, just trapped in a cage. Are you willing to let him go?"_

"_Very well," _Shaolin agreed, _"but warn him to keep away from you and the little moonbeam if he valuess hisss life." _She released Ystan, and the dwarf immediately ran to hide behind Draco, who gave him a disgusted look as the shadow snake hissed a farewell and disappeared into the trees.

"Shaolin agreed to release you on the condition that you stay away from Luna and me," Harry informed the dwarf, "Next time you bother us, your life is forfeit. Now, get away from me so I can go rescue Luna." Ystan looked up at Draco, and ran off when the blonde boy nodded.

"Not so fast, Little Lion," Draco said, grabbing Harry's arm as he turned to leave, "Where do you think you're going?"

"Didn't I just say I'm going to rescue Luna?" Harry rolled his eyes, "Now let me go, Malfoy. Oh, and don't call me 'Little Lion'; you don't get to give me nicknames." He tried to pull away only to have Draco push him into a nearby tree, one hand on either side of the Gryffindor's face and his elbows resting on Harry's shoulders to keep him in place. 'Crap!' Harry thought, 'Malfoy is too close! Mmm, he smells really good, like cinnamon and –no! Focus, Harry!'

"I don't think so," Draco smirked at the brunette, "I have things to say to you, Potter. I want to know what you think you were doing to that dwarf."

"I was going to feed him to my friend Shaolin because he took Luna away," Harry replied, "It was the only way I could make him cooperate. Now can I go?" He pushed at Draco's chest, which only resulted in Draco grabbing his wrists and trapping them above Harry's head.

"That was very bad of you," Draco whispered in his ear, "You're not supposed to cause permanent harm to my subjects, remember?"

"And I didn't," Harry said, desperately trying not to be affected by Draco's close proximity, "but if he had harmed Luna, I would have killed him; contract be damned! No one hurts my friends, Malfoy; you should know that by now." He glared at the blonde, "If you don't let me go right now-"

"You are not in any position to be making threats," Draco pointed out, tightening his hold on Harry's wrists until the other boy grimaced in pain, and then he transferred both wrists to his left hand and put his other hand at the base of Harry's neck, "Besides, you still owe me a kiss, remember?" He placed a gentle kiss next to the brunette's ear, "Are you ready to pay up?"

"I don't have time for this!" Harry protested, "I have to get to Luna! Hey!" He cried out as Draco bit his ear harshly before pulling away to look down at him, "Dammit Malfoy! What was that for?" He glared at Draco, who was scowling angrily.

"Why do you keep talking about Lovegood?" Draco demanded, "Is she your girlfriend? Is that why you're in such a hurry to get to her Potter?" 'Stupid Potter!' He thought to himself, 'I can't believe he's thinking about Luna when I'm right here; he shouldn't be thinking about anyone but me!'

"What? No!" Harry replied, "Luna is just a friend; I-I don't see her that way because-" He abruptly snapped his mouth closed, cursing himself for the slip-up.

"Because…why?" Draco pressed, "Why aren't you interested in Lovegood? Is it because you're dating the Weaslette?" Harry just gave him a 'you're stupid look' and Malfoy laughed, then his eyes widened as he realized something. "You know Harry, I've never really seen you with a girl and everyone knows you've never had a girlfriend at school…"he leaned in close again so that he could whisper in Harry's ear, and relished the shivers that produced. "Tell me Harry-are you gay? Hmmm? Is that why you don't have a girlfriend?" He licked the shell of Harry's ear, and then proceeded to nibble on the younger boy's earlobe, causing Harry to gasp a little; Harry was embarrassed to note that his member was beginning to stir interestedly.

'Oh, Merlin!' Harry thought, 'That feels so good; how did Dra-Malfoy know to kiss me there?' He squirmed a little and fought back a blush, praying that Malfoy wouldn't notice his growing erection. 'Please don't let him look down! I need to get him away from me!'

"Yes, okay!" Harry gasped out, "I'm gay! Are you happy now, Malfoy?" He shook his head a little trying to dislodge Draco, but the blonde just chuckled and gripped the base of his neck a little tighter to keep him in place.

"Very happy, my little lion," Malfoy purred, nipping his earlobe one more time before stepping back, "Now, I suppose you should go rescue Lovegood; we'll discuss the kiss you owe me later." Harry took a deep, shaky breath and gave Draco a half-hearted glare before pushing away from the tree.

"I'm glad you're happy," Harry snapped, walking down the path, "Oh, and Malfoy? I'm not your lion!" The only response he got was Malfoy's laughter echoing all around him.

After leaving Draco behind, Harry stopped for a few minutes and closed his eyes to clear his mind as he adjusted his trousers to relieve some of the pressure on his erection. 'Damn him for playing with me like that!' he fumed, 'Stupid Malfoy, always bothering me…getting under my skin; he makes me crazy! And the way he stood there by the tree, all silvery and glowing, looking like some kind of sinful moon god-'

"What? No!" Harry shook himself out of those thoughts, "I can't think of Malfoy like that; he's just trying to distract me, and I can't let him. It doesn't matter how hot he is, Malfoy is off limits; his dad works for Voldemort! So, yeah-no more thinking of Malfoy; I need to find Luna and then solve this stupid labyrinth so I can get out of here." Satisfied with his decision, Harry opened his eyes and took off down the path to locate Luna.

After walking for a few minutes, Harry could make out the sound of someone humming and a pale blue glow on the path ahead.

"Luna?" He called, walking faster, "Luna! Is that you?" He began running full-out, and soon stepped into the circle of blue light where Luna was being held captive in a cage hanging about twenty feet above the path. "Luna! I've been worried about you! Are you okay?"

"Oh, Harry!" Luna peered out from between the bars of the cage, a look of surprise on her face, "What are you doing here? You look very flustered; have the cinnadoms been bothering you? They feed on and encourage anger you know."

"No, I was just running," Harry replied, "And what do you mean 'what am I doing here'? I was looking for you, of course! Did Ystan hurt you? If he did, I will kill that dwarf!"

"Oh no; I'm just fine," Luna replied, and then pouted, "The crumple horned snorkack got away though; do you think there are any more of them in the forest?"

"I'm sure there are," Harry said, "Now I just need to get you down from there. Hang on; it should just take a few minutes." Harry stepped back a little so he could get a better look at the cage, and saw that it was being held up by a thick vine, which was attached to a tree next to the path. Harry examined the vine, but decided it would be too dangerous to cut Luna down. "Okay, I'm going to climb up to you," he informed the blonde girl, "No, wait!" he pulled out the knife Sirius had given him, "Luna, I'm going to toss this up to you; this knife can undo any lock, so you'll be able to get out of there."

"Okay," Luna agreed, "I'm ready, Harry." Harry tossed the knife up and heard it land on the floor of the cage. A few minutes later, the cage door opened and Luna looked down at him. "Should I jump?"

"No," Harry shook his head, "Didn't you take one of those purple scarves with you?" Luna nodded and pulled the scarf out of her purse-and since when did she have a purse, Harry wondered absently. "Good; tie one end of the scarf to the bars, and then you can use that to climb down; I'll stand right here to catch you if you fall."

"I trust you," Luna smiled, and did as Harry suggested. Once she tied off the scarf, she carefully used it to climb down. She came to the bottom of the scarf when the ground was still about ten feet below her; looking at Harry she flashed him a brilliant smile and then let go. Harry managed to catch Luna, but fell to the ground in the process.

"A little warning would have been nice," Harry chastised, but Luna just giggled and stood up, offering Harry her hand. Harry waved it away and then got to his feet, "You're crazy," he shook his head at the Ravenclaw, "Come on Luna; we'd better get going." He took Luna's hand and started down the path, "Oh, and this time? No running off without me, okay?"

"Of course Harry," Luna agreed, "Oh, did I tell you Ystan took my wand? I really hope I can get it back." She frowned for a moment, but then resumed her humming.

"I'm sure we can get Malfoy to make Ystan give it back," Harry replied, "I can't imagine he would let that dwarf get away with stealing a witch's wand; we'll just have to make do without it for now. I wonder if the challenges will be harder to deal with now?" Luna just shrugged and smiled, skipping down the shadowy path, tugging on Harry's hand to make him keep up. Harry shook his head, but couldn't help laughing at the younger girl; she was like a ray of sunshine on this dark path, keeping him from obsessing about what creatures might be hiding in the trees around them and what traps might lie on the path ahead. On a normal day Harry would only pretend to care about Luna's ramblings, but today he found himself avidly listening as Luna told him all about the creatures only she could see on the path ahead-these ranged from snargles ("Strange, they don't usually travel so far from their mistletoe.") to blibbering humdingers and snarky snifflepods ("They really like vanilla, so be careful what type of shampoo you use.") It was because of this, that he didn't notice the next trap until it was too late.

"Oh, Harry; look out!" Luna cried, "It's a whole herd of cinnadoms!" The blonde girl squealed and pushed Harry out of the way of the invisible (and possibly non-existent) creatures, and they both fell into a large, squishy plant.

"Luna!" Harry protested, "Now look what you did!" He fought to get out of the plant, but found that the tendrils were wrapped tightly around his body. He struggled in panic for a moment before he recognized the plant as the one he had encountered in first year when going after the Sorcerer's Stone. "It's Devil's Snare!" He told Luna, forcing himself to relax.

"Oh yes," Luna agreed, "It makes a nice place for a nap as long as you don't toss and turn in your sleep. It also makes a wonderful door; shall we see what's on the other side Harry?"

"What are you talking about?" Harry demanded, but Luna just smiled and closed her eyes-looking for all the world like she was really taking a nap. "Luna are you really-Luna!" He cried out as the young girl was swallowed by the plant. "Luna!" he began struggling again, but found himself firmly held in the tendrils of Devil's Snare.

"Harry!" He could hear Luna's voice faintly, "Relax Harry! Just close your eyes and let go! It's the only way to escape the cinnadoms!" Taking a deep breath, Harry obeyed Luna's instructions and closed his eyes, forcefully slowing down his breathing.

"Hey!" Harry fell through the Devil's Snare and was startled out of his thoughts when he landed on the hard ground, "Ow! That hurt!" He rubbed his behind and felt around for his glasses which had fallen off.

"Here they are," Luna handed him his glasses and helped him to his feet, "It's lucky for us the fall wasn't very long," she commented, "unfortunately, the way up is much longer."

"That makes no sense," Harry snapped feeling somewhat irritated with the blonde girl for getting them in this mess, "the distance we fell has to be the same as-"he trailed off as he looked up and-and up and up-and was unable to see where they had fallen from, "Sometimes I hate magic," he grumbled, then looked at Luna, "So I guess we can't climb back up, which means we need to find another way out." He looked around, only to find that they were in a small, dark cavern that was almost perfectly circular with no windows or doors, and the only illumination came from small crystals on the walls that emitted a steady blue light.

"Oh, we won't be able to find a way out of here," Lana said, "This is an oubliette; it's a place-"

"Where they put people to be forgotten," Harry sighed, "So I guess that means we have to wait for Malfoy to show up and annoy us?"

"Yes, Prince Draco should be here shortly," Luna conceded, "I brought a pack of cards so we can play Exploding Snap while we wait. Oh wait! I also have tarot cards; would you like me to read your fortune instead?"

"Er, no thanks Luna," Harry said, "Exploding Snap will be fine." He walked around the cavern, trailing his hand along the wall while he waited for Luna to locate the cards. When Harry was halfway around the small cavern, he felt a small break in the wall and leaned forward to examine it closer. Feeling along the crack he realized it was a door of some sort, which meant there had to be a lock and…"Found it!" Harry shouted, excited, "Luna, there is a door here! Quick, bring me my knife and I'll be able to get us out!"

"Your knife?" Luna questioned, tilting her head to the side, "Oh! You mean the knife that unlocked the cage door?"

"Yes," Harry said, "Can you bring it to me, please?" He waited while Luna searched through her pockets and then her purse trying to locate the knife. After a few minutes she looked back at Harry, her silvery-grey eyes wide.

"I don't have it," she told Harry, "I put it in my jacket pocket when I opened the cage, but there's a hole in it now…it must have fallen out." Harry was silent for a minute, then he exploded.

"What?" He yelled, "You lost my knife? Sirius gave me that knife for Christmas! I can't believe you lost it Luna! Do you know how much that knife means to me? Dammit!" He slammed his fist into the cavern wall and then cursed again as the pain shot through his hand.

"I'm sorry," Luna whispered, "I didn't mean to lose your knife." Harry glared over at her, and saw that Luna's silvery eyes were bright with tears. "I promise I'll look for it when we get out of here." She sniffled a little and Harry felt his anger draining away.

"Oh, Luna," he sighed, "I'm not really mad at you; I'm just sad that it's missing. Come here." He tugged on Luna's hand and pulled her into a hug. "Don't cry "Little Moonbeam"; I'm sorry I yelled at you, it's just…that knife was one of the only things I had that Sirius gave me."

"I know," Luna cried into his shoulder, "and I'm really sorry; I know how much Sirius means to you and how much it hurt you to lose him. I will help you find the knife again; once I get my wand back I _know_ I'll be able to find it."

"It's okay," Harry said, rubbing her back, "It was a shock to hear that the knife is missing, but I really shouldn't have overreacted; after all, I have a plan to get him back, I just need a little more power…"

"I'll help you get the power you need," Luna said, drying her eyes, "In fact, I know that you'll have the power to get him back soon." Harry cocked his head to the side and opened his mouth to ask _how_ she knew he would get the power he needed, but then he just smiled and shook his head; Luna never would give a straight answer when she made predictions.

"That's good to know," he said, "Now, why don't we play Exploding Snap while we wait for someone to let us out of here?" Luna smiled in response and pulled out the cards, and they sat down to wait.

Back to Draco…

Draco smirked as he watched Harry storm off down the path; that had been a very productive encounter as far as the Slytherin was concerned-not only did he find out that Potter was gay, but he also managed to discomfort him, which was always fun. Yes, Draco loved being the only one who could get under Potter's skin, and the way he blushed…Merlin, that was sexy!

'Okay Draco, focus!' he told himself, 'There's plenty of time to daydream about Potter-no, _Harry_- later, like after he fails to solve the labyrinth. Right now, I need to take care of some business.'

"Ystan!" he called, and a moment later the dwarf appeared, bowing nervously to Draco.

"My Prince," he greeted, "You summoned me?"

"Yes," Draco said, "I want to know what you did to make Harry so…homicidal."

"I-I don't know, Highness," Ystan stammered, "I offered my assistance like always, but he refused me, and then I captured his friend and he tried to kill me!"

"Hmm, well Harry isn't usually suspicious of people, so you must have done something very wrong," he smirked as the dwarf trembled, "What did you do, show up randomly every time it looked like he was in trouble and offer to help?" His smirk widened as the dwarf paled, "You did; no wonder Potter didn't trust you! Well, did you take anything from Lady Lovegood?"

"Y-yes, sire," Ystan replied, and pulled out a wand, "I took her wand from her."

"Excellent," Draco said, taking the wand from him, "I suppose you aren't a total waste of space. Very well, from now on you are to have no contact with Harry or Lady Lovegood; I want you to follow them, and alert me immediately if they make it to the center of the labyrinth. Also, change the tunnel in the oubliette so that it will lead to the Golden Desert instead of back to the beginning of the labyrinth; right now the tunnel leads straight to the center of the labyrinth, but I don't want it to be that easy for him if he does fall into the oubliette."

"Yes, Prince Draco," Ystan bowed and turned to leave.

"Oh, and Ystan?" the dwarf looked back at Draco, "The next time you annoy Harry, I'll let him kill you-and if he doesn't kill you I will. Now, be gone!" Ystan gave a frightened squeal and ran off, leaving Draco to chuckle after him. "Now that that's taken care of, I suppose I should check in on Harry." He pulled a small orb out of his pocket and it expanded into a viewing screen, which showed Luna falling on top of Harry, knocking them both to the ground. He watched as they talked for a few minutes before they started back down the path. With the viewing screen he had he was able to hear the friend's conversation, and he shook his head at Luna's ramblings, although he did enjoy seeing the smile on Harry's face as he listened to the blonde girls chatter. He let his thoughts wander for a moment as he contemplated ways to get that smile aimed in his direction, but quickly looked back at the screen when he heard Luna yell; he was just in time to see her push Harry off the path-and into the Devil' Snare that hid the entrance to the oubliette. Draco grinned as he watched the two fall down into the dark cavern, and was pleased to note that they were unable to open the door; the information about Harry's godfather was very interesting, and Draco filed it away for further contemplation and focused back on what was going on in the oubliette. It wasn't much; apparently Harry had given up on trying to get out by himself and he was playing a game of Exploding Snap with Luna.

"Well, it's about time things started going my way," he smirked, "Hmm, Harry still has about seven hours left…I think I'll let him stew in the oubliette for a while. In the meantime, maybe I can find that missing knife." He apparated to the spot where Luna had been captured (and he was very grateful that apparating in the realm was legal for everyone fifteen or older) and began tracing the pairs steps, keeping his eyes on the path to try and locate the knife. About twenty minutes later, he came to stop next to the Devil's Snare and frowned; there was no sign of the missing knife. With a snap of his fingers he summoned Ystan and, after verifying that he hadn't seen the knife and that the oubliette path had been reset, sent him away again. "I wonder what happened to that knife…" he shrugged it off, it was bound to show up eventually. "Oh well, I still have a few things to take care of, so I guess I should get back to the castle." He pulled out his viewing crystal one last time to verify that Harry was still sitting in the cavern and nodded in satisfaction when he saw that the game of Exploding Snap was still going on. As Draco put the crystal back in his pocket, a thought occurred to him and he broke out into a grin.

"Oh, Luna!" Draco laughed, "I am so glad Harry ran into you; this couldn't be more perfect!" He turned on the spot and apparated back to the castle with his laughter echoing behind him.

********************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note ******************************************************************************************

**Another chapter done; yay! And, our first sexually charged encounter between Harry and Draco, which is always fun ^_^ I'm trying to keep Harry and Draco in character as much as possible, but there may be some slight OOCness to make the story work. Also, I have been asked about Mpreg, but I haven't come to a decision on that yet since the boys are only 16. As always, reviews are welcome and I will have the next Chapter up ASAP. **


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

"This is so boring!" Harry complained, "We've been here for over an hour and Malfoy hasn't shown up yet-not even to taunt me about falling into this trap! When he does show up, I swear I am going to knock his stupid head off!" He picked up the deck of cards and threw them at the wall angrily. Harry and Luna had been trapped in the oubliette for a little over an hour, and Harry had long ago lost his patience for sitting around playing card games; he had already told Luna about everything that had happened to him since Draco showed up back on Privet Drive, he had informed her about the wording of the prophesy (after all, she did risk her life for him back at the ministry), and they had also discussed Harry's birthday and how unfair it was for Dumbledore to make Harry miss the cruise with the Weasley family.

"He's probably busy," Luna replied calmly as she collected the cards, "he is the prince after all, _and _he still has to complete his summer work; don't worry though-I'm sure he'll be here soon. I don't think Draco would be satisfied if you lost because of being stuck in the oubliette-he will want to prove that he can best you at something; plus, he will want to collect that kiss you owe him. It was rather sweet of him to let you come rescue me before taking the kiss."

"Don't remind me," Harry groaned, "I hate that he was able to get under my skin like that! And I just know he's going to take advantage of the kiss; he's a Slytherin so he won't be able to help himself." Harry sighed and lay down on the cavern floor, "Why did I have to wish Dudley away? So I would have spent my birthday at home with a spoiled, obnoxious wale; at least I wouldn't be sitting in a musty old oubliette, bored out of my mind!" He shot up as he heard someone laugh on the other side of the room, and saw Draco standing in the shadows.

"I'm sorry you don't approve," Malfoy drawled, "Perhaps you would like me to add some cushions, maybe a throw rug or two? Sheesh Potter; I never knew you were so high maintenance!" He snapped his fingers and suddenly the oubliette was decorated with golden drapes on the walls, and a cream colored sofa and loveseat on top of a red and gold oriental rug. "There, is that better? It even matches your Gryffindor colors." Harry just rolled his eyes.

"It's about time Malfoy," He glared at the blonde prince, "Luna and I have been bored out of our minds for the past half an hour, right Luna?" There was no response, so he looked over at the fey girl and saw that she was sleeping on a couch Draco had conjured. "What did you do to her?" Harry demanded, standing up threateningly; this might have been more effective if Draco wasn't so much taller than him. He also found it hard to intimidate a boy who looked as hot as Malfoy did; the Slytherin had changed clothes since the last time he had seen him and was now wearing a pain of skin-tight leather pants paired with a midnight-blue button up shirt and a silver floor-length cloak with dark blue lining. Yes, Harry admitted-if only to himself- Draco Malfoy looked like a wet dream come to life, and the brunette had to remind himself not to let his guard down.

"It's just a little sleeping spell," Draco said dismissively, before flashing Harry a wicked grin that made his pulse speed up, "Nothing to worry your pretty little head about Potter; I just wanted a little privacy." He took a step towards Harry and smirked when the brunette took an involuntary step back.

"Privacy for what?" Harry asked, "Anything you want to say to me can be said in front of Luna, and if this is about the kiss I owe you…well, I would prefer to have a witness to make sure you don't take advantage of the situation."

"I disagree," Draco said, "I would much rather talk to you alone, Lion, and then you can pass on any information you think Luna should know. As for the kiss, I'm not really much of an exhibitionist but if that's what turns you on maybe-"

"Get your mind out of the trash," Harry interrupted as he fought back a blush; he chose to ignore the pet name for now, knowing that he really had no way of making Draco stop using it, "Can we just get this over with already?" Draco didn't respond immediately, but walked around the small room and made himself comfortable on the loveseat; he looked at Harry and patted the cushion beside him, inviting the emerald-eyed boy to join him. Harry glared at him, but Draco just raised an eyebrow and Harry shook his head sighing before he sat next to Draco, placing as much distance as possible between himself and the blonde. Draco chuckled and scooted closer to Harry, who sat perched on the edge of his seat as though he would jump up at any moment.

"Relax," Draco said, "It's a kiss Harry, not a curse."

"That's debatable," Harry muttered darkly, and Draco glared at him for a moment, then he got a thoughtful look on his face and moved back over to his side of the loveseat, giving Harry a little bit of space.

"Maybe we should talk first," Draco said, and watched as Harry relaxed slightly, obviously happy to be putting the kiss off for a bit longer, "after all, you may not be capable of coherent thought-much less speech-after out kiss."

"Glad to see you're not full of yourself Malfoy," Harry rolled his eyes, "What do you want to talk about?"

"Well, first of all I suppose I should tell you that I have observing spells on you," he raised a hand to forestall Harry's angry retort, "It is standard procedure, after all we do have dangerous creatures in the realm, not to mention that crackpot Dumbledore has been trying to find a way in and so has the Dark Lord."

"I'm surprised your father hasn't allowed Voldemort here," Harry said, "Hell, I'm surprised I haven't been turned over to him already!" Draco gave him a withering look before responding.

"The contract prevents _any_ of the people in my realm from handing you over to the Dark Lord," the blonde replied, "and that includes my father. Plus, there is a magical barrier preventing anyone who would cause harm to the realm from entering; this was set up by the first king of the Fae and reinforced by Merlin himself. Now as I was saying before, the observation spells let me hear the conversation between you and Loony over there, about how you need power to rescue your godfather; together you and I would have the power to do that and so much more; you could even defeat the Dark Lord with my help."

"Let me guess," Harry said drily, "all I would have to do is give up and let you win, right? Well, no thanks Malfoy. I'll find another way to get the power I need, and it won't involve you. As for defeating Voldemort…that's my burden." Draco shrugged nonchalantly.

"It's your decision," he said, "I just wanted to give you something to think about; let me know if you change your mind. Now, onto more…personal matters," he lowered his voice seductively and looked at Harry from underneath lowered eyelids; Draco moved closer to the brunette and placed his hand on Harry's shoulder when he tried to get off the loveseat. He pushed the brunette back into the cushions and placed his free hand on the nape of Harry's neck; leaning in he whispered in Harry's ear, "This is something else I want you to think about, Harry." The Gryffindor shivered at the feel of Draco's warm breath tickling his ear, and then he felt those long, pale fingers tangle in his hair, turning him to face the sexy Slytherin. Wide green eyes met sultry blue-grey, and Harry swallowed nervously as he watched that pale face move closer to him; when he felt the brush of warm breath over his lips Harry closed his eyes.

"Relax," Malfoy breathed, and then those perfect pink lips claimed Harry's in a kiss. He kept the kiss gentle a first, just a soft brush of lips that made Harry tremble at the sweetness of it.

'This can't be Malfoy,' Harry thought, 'Malfoy being sweet? The world must be coming to an end!' He moaned softly as Draco slid his hand up from Harry's shoulder to gently cup his cheek, tilting the brunette's head for a better angle as he slowly increased the intensity of the kiss, and Harry found himself helplessly wrapping his arms around the blonde's neck. Draco licked and nibbled at Harry's bottom lip, asking for entrance and when Harry tried to turn his head away Draco sank his teeth into that plump lip, causing Harry to gasp at the small pain. Draco took advantage of that moment to plunge his tongue in Harry's mouth, gently coaxing the brunette into a battle for dominance that Draco soon won. The blonde celebrated his victory by thoroughly tasting the mouth below him, his tongue flicking here and there, touching Harry's teeth, pressing the inside of his cheeks, then twining around the other boys tongue once again.

Draco gently tugged at Harry's hair as he licked, nibbled and sucked at the other boy's mouth, drawing out small moans that had Draco groaning with the desire to hear more; he fought back the urge to shove Harry down onto the couch and press their hard lengths together, knowing that would scare the other boy away. Instead, he softened the kiss again, drawing his tongue out of Harry's mouth and secretly rejoicing in the displeased whimper that earned him. He pressed one last gentle kiss to Harry's lips, and then pulled away, disentangling his fingers from Harry's dark locks, and gently ran his thumb against Harry's jawline as he admired the flush on the younger boy's cheeks.

'Well, I'd say that was a success,' Draco inwardly smirked as he watched the Gryffindor trying to get his breathing back under control. When Harry opened his eyes they were still slightly clouded with lust, and Draco found himself entranced; it took all of his will power not to simply pounce on the other boy, kiss him completely senseless and make him forget that he ever had any idea of leaving. 'Because I am not letting you go; not now, not ever,' Draco promised himself, 'you are _mine _Harry Potter, you just don't know it yet.' He smiled at Harry as the other boy brought himself under control and unwound himself from Draco.

"I'll bet you've never been kissed before, have you?" Draco teased, and Harry shook his head lightly, causing Draco's hand to fall away from his face.

"Not like that," Harry replied and then blushed at the admission before clearing his throat and attempting to change the subject, "So, now that I've paid your forfeit, are you going to let us out of here? Or do you think you'll lose this little competition and I'll solve the labyrinth if you let me out? Leaving me in here may be your only chance at winning this thing," he taunted the blonde haired boy, knowing that Draco could never resist competing against him, which is why he was surprised when the Slytherin threw back his head and laughed.

"Oh Harry," Draco chuckled, "I had every intention of striking a bargain to let you out of here, so there's no need for you to try and pick a fight. Although, you do look awfully cute when you're trying to scheme, Little Lion." He brought his hand up to Harry's face again but the other boy brushed it away, scowling as he felt his face flush again.

"I told you to stop calling me that Malfoy," Harry glared at the amused prince.

"Draco," the other boy said, "Call me Draco, Harry, and I might consider dropping the pet name...at least for now."

"Fine," Harry gritted his teeth, "You mentioned something about a bargain, _Draco_?"

"Of course," Draco replied, "After all, I can't have you whining about this being unfair when you fail to solve the labyrinth. So, the question is how badly do you want to get out of here?"

"I'm sure you already have something in mind," Harry said, "so why don't you just tell me what you want?"

"Very well," Draco nodded, "I will let the two of you out of here, and you will owe me another forfeit before the time runs out. This time, however, you don't get to know what the forfeit is in advance."

"I told you before Draco, I don't trust you enough to give you an unnamed forfeit," Harry said, "so come up with something else."

"Then I guess you're stuck here," Draco shrugged, then he rolled his eyes, "Look, I promise that I won't ask for anything that will compromise your Gryffindor integrity, and if you feel that the forfeit is completely unreasonable then I will allow you to give me something else. So, is it a deal?"

"I just know I'm going to regret this," Harry said, biting his lip, "but I don't have much of a choice, so I guess I agree."

"Excellent," Draco smiled, "Shall we seal the deal with a kiss?" He smirked at Harry, but the other boy simply held out his hand.

"How about we shake on it instead?"

"A kiss is so much more fun though!" The blonde pouted teasingly, but still took Harry's hand. As he drew away he locked gazes with Harry and made sure to let his touch linger a moment longer than necessary. "Just so you know," Draco began as he let go of Harry's hand, "I have no intention of ever joining the Dark Lord, but I'm not joining Dumbledore's little order either; I will do my best to remain neutral, unless _you _ can give me something that would make me joining "the light" worthwhile. You see, Harry, I want you; not the Gryffindor Golden Boy, or the boy-who-lived, I want _you_ Harry Potter, the boy-who-lives-to-annoy-me." Before Harry could respond Draco leaned in and pressed another quick kiss to his lips and then stood up laughing. "There; that's one more thing for you to think about. Now, here you go, Harry," he pointed over at a section of wall which opened inward to reveal a tunnel illuminated by more of those blue lights he kept seeing in this realm, "there's your way out. Oh, and try not to fall in any more oubliettes because next time I _will _leave you in it until the time runs out. Have fun now, Harry, and remember what we discussed. The clock is ticking!" Harry watched as Draco stepped towards the newly-revealed doorway and disappeared in a swirl of silver, before he went over to the couch to wake up Luna.

"Luna," he shook the blonde girl lightly, "Come on Luna, we need to leave now." Luna slowly opened her eyes and smiled as she saw Harry.

"Oh, I'm so sorry Harry!" she exclaimed, sitting up, "I'm afraid I was attacked by snuffleflies; they have dust that makes you fall asleep."

"I thought they made you hyper," Harry said, and Luna shook her head.

"No, snifflepods make you hyper," she replied, "They like vanilla, remember? Snuffleflies hang around with wrackspurts and make you sleepy."

"Oh," Harry said, then shook his head, "Anyway, that doesn't matter, because it wasn't snuffleflies _or _snifflepods; Draco cast a sleeping spell on you to make you fall asleep because he wanted to talk to me alone."

"That's good then," Luna smiled, "Did he say anything interesting?"

"Not really," Harry replied, "He just said he's been watching me-which is kind of creepy now that I think about it- and offered to give me power if I gave up on the labyrinth, so I of course told him no. Then he claimed his kiss, and said that he wanted me; we made a deal that I owe him another forfeit since he opened the door for us, then he left."

"How was the kiss?" Luna ignored everything else Harry said and focused on what she felt was the most important thing.

"What?" Harry cried, "It was…I don't know!" He blushed under Luna's wide-eyed scrutiny.

"Well, did you enjoy it?" she asked, and Harry flushed some more.

"I-I guess," Harry replied, "I mean it was intense and…I had to kiss him! It's not like it was my idea or anything!"

"And it's so sweet of him to say that he wants you," Luna said, finally getting off of the couch, "You know Harry, Prince Draco may be the "power the Dark Lord knows not"; the two of you would be very powerful together. Also, he has been very nice since you got here; you know he didn't have to let us out of the oubliette-the king never gives petitioners a second chance if they fall into a trap. Of course, I'm fairly certain that Lucius is a member of the Rotfang Conspiracy, so his behavior is not surprising."

"I hope you're not telling me to give up," Harry frowned, "because I can't do that; Draco may be powerful, but I don't trust him, even if he is claiming to have denounced Voldemort."

"Of course I'm not telling you to give up," Luna giggled, "Silly Harry! I just wanted to make sure you consider all the options; if Draco is the one who can help you I'm sure you'll find a way to get him on your side without compromising yourself. Maybe the blibbering humdingers can help; if you channel them correctly they can give you great insight, and even help with divination."

"Er, that's great Luna," Harry bit his lip to keep from laughing, "I'll keep that in mind. Now, we should probably go before Draco decides to close this door and leave us in here." Luna nodded her agreement and they entered the passage leaving away from the oubliette. Once they were through the door way Harry looked over his shoulder and, instead of a wall, saw the passage extending behind them as well. "Let's go this way," he said, turning to take the passageway behind them, but stopped when Luna tugged his hand.

"Oh! But there are more cinnadoms that way!" Luna said, "We should continue going in this direction." She pulled Harry back in the direction they had originally been facing, and Harry just shrugged and followed her.

"Okay," Harry said, "We'll go this way." Luna gave him a brilliant smile and kissed his cheek before leading him down the path, humming happily while Harry turned his thoughts back to his latest encounter with Draco. He could picture in his mind the way the blonde had looked when he stepped out of the shadows, the way his clothes clung to his lithe quidditch-toned body, and the way his eyes just oozed sex when they kissed.

'Okay, so he's hot,' he conceded, 'but that doesn't mean anything! Hell, Tom Riddle was hot when he was sixteen and now, well now he is Voldemort-a disgusting snake-face who is mentally unstable. Although, Luna had a point about Draco; he really didn't have to let us out of the oubliette. Plus, he didn't take advantage of the kiss like I thought he would.' Harry blushed as he remembered the kiss and his own reactions to it. 'That was definitely better than the kiss with Cho! I don't know; maybe Luna's right and I should consider accepting help from Draco…' He shook his head, 'but that would require me giving up on the labyrinth, and I can't do that; I would be completely at his mercy according to that contract I signed. Of course, I wouldn't have to worry about the Dursley's anymore because I'm sure Draco would let-er, _make_-me stay here, and he doesn't like Dumbledore either, so that's something else I wouldn't have to spend as much time worrying about. Ah! I'm so confused! I wish 'Mione was here so I could get her opinion.' He heaved a sigh, drawing Luna's attention.

"Wrackspurts?" the younger girl asked sympathetically, "I thought I saw some flying around." She swatted at the air and Harry gave her a small smile.

"No, I was just thinking," he told her, "I've been going over everything that happened recently, and I'm a little confused about what I should do concerning Malfoy-er, Draco I mean. He's been acting different than what I'm used to. I mean, he still has the same snarky attitude, but…it just _feels_ different, and I don't know what to think about him anymore."

"I understand," Luna said solemnly, "I can't tell you what to think, but I can tell you that the Draco you've seen these past few hours is the _real_ Draco. Here, he's able to be himself because he doesn't have to worry about Voldemort and Dumbledore trying to get him to join the war; it's funny how being trained to rule a kingdom causes him less stress than just being in the wizarding world, isn't it? Really though, you need to form your own opinions, and to do that you will need to get to know Draco better. Don't worry about it too much though; you still have time." As she finished speaking they heard the chime of a grandfather clock. Dong…dong…dong…dong…dong…dong…dong…dong; there were eight chimes, letting Harry know how long he had been there.

"Draco cut my time down to eleven hours," he told Luna, "so does this mean I still have five hours or do I only have three hours left?"

"Oh, you have five hours," Luna assured him, "Draco would have sped up time so that the first two hours passed within seconds, that way the chimes on the clock will be correct; the charms around the labyrinth are set up so that the challenge always ends on thirteen chimes."

"That's good to know," Harry said, then he noticed a pinprick of light up ahead, "Look! That must be the exit!"

"How wonderful!" Luna smiled, slipping her hand out of Harry's, "Come on!" She began skipping off down the path and Harry followed at a jog, making sure that Luna didn't get too far in front of him.

'Here we go again,' he thought with amusement, 'Crazy Luna, or "Little Moonbeam" as Shaolin calls her, definitely helps keep things interesting.' After a few more minutes, they finally reached the end of the passage and Luna grabbed Harry's hand once again and pulled him out into the harsh sunlight beyond. 'Oh great,' Harry thought sarcastically as he looked around, 'A desert. Thank you Malfoy!'

"This way, Harry!" Luna said, and Harry sighed as he allowed himself be lead further into the desert, cursing a certain blonde Slytherin the entire way.

Meanwhile, back at the castle…

Draco apparated back to the castle and entered his parent's wing of the house in search of his mother. While listening in on Harry and Luna's talk earlier, Draco heard Harry mention that the following day would be his birthday and that had given him an idea. Time worked differently in the Fae realm, so Draco had to do some calculating to figure out the exact time, but he had figured out that in two hours it would be July 31st, Harry's sixteenth birthday, and Draco wanted to give the brunette a present. He knew that whatever he gave Harry would have to be special; it would have to be something to show the reluctant Gryffindor that Draco truly did have feelings for him so that Harry would want to stay even if he managed to solve the labyrinth. Of course he had no intention of letting that happen, but still, it was always better to have a backup plan. And that is why he was currently outside the door to his parent's chambers to ask Narcissa for help. He raised his hand to knock on the door, but then paused as he heard his father's voice.

"No Narcissa, I won't have it!" Lucius thundered, "This betrothal is very important to our family; the Dark Lord himself is the one who suggested it, and if we want to remain in his favor-"

"I don't care about the Dark Lord," Narcissa interrupted firmly, "I care about our son, and his happiness. If you force him to marry Pansy he will never be happy; Lucius darling, our son is _gay_, why can't you accept that and let him make his own decisions?"

"Draco is not gay!" Lucius argued, "It's just a phase he's going through; he's rebelling against what's expected of him just like any teenager, but he will give up this charade once he realizes it's not doing him any good. Also, I am bringing him to the Death Eater meeting in two weeks; there are five children, including Draco, who will be coming of age by the end of the year and the Dark Lord wishes to initiate all of them into our ranks before the school year begins. This is a great honor and-"

"No!" Narcissa interrupted once again, "I will not allow you to force Draco into becoming a Death Eater! It's bad enough knowing that you grovel at the feet of a crazed half-blood pretending to be a pureblood; I will not have Draco following in your footsteps. I will keep him in this realm permanently if that is the only way I can protect him!"

"I am the king here Narcissa," Lucius hissed, "You cannot use this realm as a place to hide _our_ son."

"Oh, but I can," Draco was surprised to hear his mother laugh, "Have you forgotten how you became the Goblin King, Lucius? _My_ father was the previous king, remember? He chose me as his successor because we had no male family members left to inherit after Regulus died and Sirius was arrested and he felt that I would rule better than my sisters; our marriage is the only thing keeping you on the throne-I may have been letting you handle things your way, but I am still the ruler of this realm. Cross me, and I will sever our marriage; I do not even have to petition anyone for a divorce because I am the final authority here."

"Now Darling, don't be like that," Draco heard Lucius trying to placate his mother, "I know I got a little carried away with the Death Eater initiation, but I'm willing to let that go if it is truly not something that Draco would want. As for the marriage, I still feel that a union with the Parkinson's would be best, but I am willing to consider Blaise instead if Draco really prefers the company of men."

"You will not force him into _any_ marriage," Narcissa clarified, "His bride-whether they be male or female-will be approved by Draco. Now, perhaps you should go to your meeting before Severus gets suspicious; I know that the Dark Lord was not pleased with what happened at the Ministry last May, and while you make me angry I _do not_ want to lose you to a curse." Draco heard some soft murmurings between his parents and assumed they were saying good-bye, so he walked down the hall a little ways and waited for his father to leave the room. After a few minutes Lucius left the bedroom and entered his study instead, and Draco headed back to his parents room and knocked on the door, smiling when it opened to reveal his mother.

"Hello Dragon," Narcissa greeted him with a hug, "What brings you here? Are you having any problems with Mr. Potter?"

"No Mother, nothing like that," Draco assured her, "I actually wanted to ask your help with something, but first I need to know…if I tell you something, will you swear not to tell Father? I know what I want to do when Harry-er, Potter, I mean-fails to solve the labyrinth, and I know Father would not approve."

"Of course I will keep your secret," Narcissa smiled, "Come sit down and tell me what you have in mind." She led him over to the sitting area and they both took a seat on the soft blue loveseat where Narcissa handed him a glass of wine.

"Well Mother, I know you are aware of my...sexual preferences?" Narcissa nodded and he continued, "Well, I have a confession to make; I don't hate Harry Potter, and I never did. Well, maybe I hated him a little the first two years we were at school together, but I was still upset that he rejected my friendship. Anyway, over the past couple of years I realized that I was starting to develop feelings for Harry, but I knew he would never give me a chance, not with our history. Then, a few hours ago, I answered the summons for the Goblin King and came face-to-face with Harry, and I knew I _had_ to take advantage of the opportunity, so I convinced him to put his own freedom up as the prize for solving the labyrinth. Here;" he snapped his fingers and held out the contract he and Harry had signed earlier in the evening and watched as his mother read it.

"Draco," she looked up and smiled after she read it, "this is definitely a clever idea; if he solves the labyrinth he has the chance to become part of our kingdom anyway, which gives you more time to win him over, and if he fails then he becomes yours…I assume that you intend to marry him?" Draco nodded and her smile widened, "Oh, this is wonderful! Harry is very strong in his own right, and the two of you together…you could do just about anything! But, of course, you know this already, and it seems like you have everything under control, so what kind of help do you need from me?"

"His birthday is tomorrow," Draco replied, "actually, it's only a couple of hours until midnight and Harry will be sixteen. I heard him talking to Luna-"

"Luna is with him? Luna Lovegood?" Narcissa interrupted, surprised and Draco nodded.

"Yes," he confirmed, "but don't worry; she seems to be providing him with companionship more than anything else, and he told me himself he's gay so she is not competition for me." Narcissa nodded and Draco continued with what he had previously been saying, "So, he was discussing his birthday with Luna and it seems Dumbledore is forcing him to stay with his cousin-the obnoxious whale that was here earlier-instead of being with his friends. Since he can't do what he wants for his birthday, I want to get him a gift, but it has to be something special that will show him I truly care about him, and I am at somewhat of a loss as to what I can do. The one thing I know he wants is to get his godfather back, and I know how to do that but it would require Harry's power as well which means he would have to wait until the thirteen hours are up."

"Hmm, I see how that would be a problem," Narcissa agree, "and his godfather is my cousin Sirius?" Draco nodded, "To bring him back from beyond the veil the two of you would need to be bonded since that is when your power will be strongest; however, if you can get the help of at least two other powerful wizards with a tie to Sirius-whether that be a blood tie or ties of love-then you would have enough power to bring him back sooner. It will still have to wait though." She hummed thoughtfully for a moment as she considered different options for gifts, and then her eyes lit up, "I have an idea Dragon, something that will leave no doubt as to how you feel about young Harry." She stood up from the loveseat and took Draco's hand, pulling him with her, "Follow me, and we will get your intended the perfect gift!" Draco allowed his mother to pull him out of the room, smiling happily at the thought of Harry Potter being his intended; yes, today was definitely his lucky day!

********************************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note******************************************************************************

**I had a bit of trouble getting this chapter started, but I finally finished it; yay me! I feel like we're really starting to get into the story now, and I know it's time to give a little background on the whole Dumbledore thing, so next chapter will focus on the batty old headmaster and should answer some questions. On another note, any opinions on what Harry's birthday gift will be? It's going to be an object, and I have a slight idea, but I always like to hear what my readers think. So, please review! Until next time ^_^ **


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

Tap. Tap tap. Tap tap tap. Albus Dumbledore looked up from the papers he had been going over and smiled when he saw the black barn owl tapping at his window.

"Ah, Onyx, there you are," Dumbledore smiled as he opened the window, "You're a bit early today aren't you? I wasn't expecting you until after supper, and it's only two 'o clock now." The owl hooted softly and landed on the edge of Dumbledore's desk, holding out the letter tied to his leg. "Hmm, I expect the boy is asking for an advance on next month's payment; he is very rude you know," he told Onyx conversationally as he took the letter, "let's see if Harry has been behaving himself." The headmaster opened the letter, and was shocked at its contents, although his eyes never lost their sparkle.

'Mr. Dumbledore,

My freak cousin is missing. I was calling for him to bring me another snack, and he never answered. At first I thought he went to the store because I know he was supposed to be buying food, but it has been two hours and he hasn't come back yet. I thought you would like to know.

Dudley Dursley

P.s. Do I still get my money?'

"Thank you, Onyx," Dumbledore said, as he wrote a brief reply to the Dursley boy, telling him not to worry about his cousin and to owl immediately if Harry came back. "Please take this to young Mr. Dursley." He waited until the owl had flown off so he could shut the window and then he settled himself back behind his desk to consider his options.

'Damn that boy!' he fumed, 'How did he get out? I set those wards myself so that he would not be able to leave unless ordered to by his relatives, so he shouldn't have been able to run away! I should have known better than to let Potter's cousin keep an eye on him, but he was really the best option since I can't count on Harry's friends any longer.' He frowned as he remembered what had happened at the end of the year.

Once everything had been settled at the Ministry of Magic, the headmaster had returned to his office to speak with Harry. The teen was angry, violently so, but that was to be expected; Dumbledore had allowed Harry to express his rage, and then explained his actions to the distraught teen. He told Harry that he was trying to protect him and didn't want him to worry, that he saw now he should have handled things differently, and it worked; Harry apologized for his loss of temper and left the office saddened by the loss of his godfather-that meddlesome dog!-but with Dumbledore still in his confidence-or so he thought.

It wasn't until the second week of the summer holidays that Dumbledore realized he may have actually made a mistake in his dealings with Harry Potter. Every summer Albus would pay a visit to the Weasley's and Hermione Granger, tell them of his worries for Harry, and extract promises that they would keep him updated on anything Harry told them. When he met up with Harry's friends this year though, he was sorely disappointed by their responses. Hermione told the headmaster that she didn't feel right telling Dumbledore everything about her best friends because it would be a betrayal of trust, Ronald Weasley had simply agreed with his girlfriend, and Ginerva actually told him to keep his nose out of other people's business. They also informed him that they had told Harry how they had been keeping tabs on him for the past few years and the stupid brat forgave them! The main thing he was hoping to get out of the ministry ordeal-Harry's isolation from his friends-was completely ruined! So, when he discovered he couldn't count on Harry's friends for information any longer, he decided to use his family instead, and offered the Dursley's money to keep tabs on Harry and owl him every day. He had to pay them an exorbitant amount of money to get them to agree to the owl, but he considered it worth it to keep tabs on his weapon. Plus, the money was coming directly out of Harry's Gringotts account, so it didn't actually cost Dumbledore anything.

Dumbledore shook his head and brought his thoughts back to the present; his main concern right now was locating the boy, and then he could find out how he got around the wards at his aunt's house. He opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out a yellowed piece of parchment and tapped it with his wand.

"Show me the location of Harry Potter," he commanded, and watched as words appeared in spidery script across the parchment.

_This map was created for use by Albus Dumbledore only. If you are not Albus Dumbledore, please set down the map immediately. If you are Albus Dumbledore, please say your password now. If you do not say the correct password in thirty seconds this map will self-destruct. Have a nice day._

"I am a barmy old man with twinkling eyes and a long, long beard that completes my disguise," Dumbledore intoned the password he had been given with a scowl; he had tried to disable the password but he couldn't get figure out how to break the charms. As he finished speaking the words changed:

_On behalf of Messrs.' Padfoot, Moony and Prongs we are proud to present you with the Marauders Family Locator Map (a product of Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes). Please state the name of the person you wish to locate._

"Harry Potter," Dumbledore said, and watched as different views flashed across the parchment. After a few moments the pictures stopped and a new message appeared.

_Error; the person you are searching for cannot be found. Please try again later. If you feel you are receiving this message in error, please contact the manufacturers. Have a nice day!_

"This is unacceptable!" Dumbledore thundered, an angry glint replacing the normal twinkle in his eyes, "Those boys gave me a malfunctioning product! No, but wait; it worked the last time I needed to locate Harry, when he was facing down the dementors before fifth year started. Hmm, maybe he is somewhere that the map can't locate him?" He was considering his next move when Severus Snape entered his office.

"Albus I-"

"Ah, Severus my boy!" Dumbledore interrupted, "Just who I needed to see; it seems Mr. Potter has disappeared, would you just pop in over at Grimmauld Place for me and see if he's there? He may not know that we had to temporarily move the headquarters."

"Actually, I was coming to tell you that I am being summoned," Severus informed him, "however, if I have your permission to tell the Dark Lord that the boy is missing, I'm sure he will let me leave the meeting early to conduct a search."

"No, that's alright," Dumbledore sighed, "I will send Minerva to look for Harry. Let me know when you get back from the meeting; will you send Minerva to me on your way out?" Snape gave him a curt nod and then swept from the office. A few minutes late the strict deputy headmistress entered his office. "Minerva, I need you to see if Harry is at Grimmauld Place; he is missing from his relative's house."

"Of course Albus," She agreed, "Is the floo still connected?" At the headmasters nod she headed to the stairway so she could use the fireplace on the second level of the office, "Very well, I will be back momentarily." Dumbledore waited until he heard her leave through the floo and then summoned Fawkes.

"We need to go to the Dursley house," he said, writing a quick note to advise Severus and Minerva of his actions, and a moment later the two vanished in a flash of light, only to reappear in the back garden of Number 4 Privet Drive. He walked up to the front door and entered without knocking. Once he was inside, Dumbledore saw Dudley Dursley sitting on the couch and watching television. "Hello Dudley." The blonde boy jumped in surprise and then narrowed his eyes at his cousin's teacher.

"What are you doing here?" Dudley demanded, "Mum and dad said you aren't supposed to be here!"

"I know my boy, and I do apologize, but this is an emergency," he pulled out some muggle money and handed it to Dudley, "Here's a little bit of extra money for having to go through this trouble; this is just for you so you don't have to split it with your parents." He smiled inwardly as the boy grabbed the money, "Wonderful, now I just want to ask you a few questions about the last time you saw Harry."

"It was at lunch time," Dudley replied, "He brought me some stew and then he got mad at me for no reason and started yelling; I was afraid that he was going to use magic on me!" He looked at the wizard with wide eyes and was pleased to see him nodding sympathetically.

"I assure you that Harry will not use magic on you," he told the boy, "After last summer he was told in no uncertain terms that the next time he uses magic outside of school he will be expelled and spend time in prison." He watched the gleeful expression inn Dudley's eyes and encouraged him to continue, "What else happened?"

"Erm…I don't really remember anything else," Dudley said, "Oh, wait! He was watching this stupid movie, and he said something about calling the goblin king to kidnap me. After that I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I remember I was hungry again and Harry was nowhere to be found."

"Thank you very much Mr. Dursley," Dumbledore smiled, "Were you in here when he mentioned the goblin king?"

"No, I was upstairs in my room."

"Do you mind if I take a look around upstairs?" He smiled again at Dudley's nod, "Excellent; I will be right back, and in the meantime why don't you enjoy some dinner?" He waved his wand and made a small feast appear on the coffee table in front of the couch before heading upstairs. He by-passed the room with all the locks on it without batting an eye, and continued on to the room that he knew belonged to Dudley. He examined the room carefully and, after casting a few spells, found two different magical signatures in the room. One of the signatures he recognized as belonging to Harry, and the other one were also familiar although he couldn't quite place it. A few more spells let him know that a portal had opened in the room, between this realm and that of the goblin king, so he knew that Harry must be in the goblin realm.

'This is my chance!' Dumbledore thought excitedly, 'All those tracking spells I placed on Harry should allow me to get into the goblin realm and I can work on forming an alliance with the monarchy there; if this goes accordingly I may not even need the Potter boy anymore!' After locating the place where the portal had opened, Dumbledore found that it was a one-way portal into this realm. Instead of being discouraged, Dumbledore followed the magical signatures downstairs and through the house to the backdoor, where he discovered the portal that Harry must have left through. Dumbledore smiled triumphantly; he had installed an observation spell into the window on the backdoor, so he should be able to see who came to get Harry. He activated the spell, and watched as Harry passed through the door followed by Draco Malfoy, which made Dumbledore frown; if the Malfoy's were the rulers of the goblin realm an alliance was highly unlikely, which meant he would have to over-throw them. Dumbledore sighed; the things he had to go through for the greater good! He cast a spell to open the portal, and smirked when the door was surrounded by a blue glow. He reached out to grasp the handle-and then cried out as he was knocked backwards by a fierce heat; when he looked down, he noticed that his purple robes were on fire and cast a quick spell to douse the flames.

"Are-are you okay?" he looked back at the doorway and saw Dudley standing there looking frightened.

"Yes, I'm fine," he assured the boy, "Just go back to the living room and I'll let myself out. Thank you for your help Mr. Dursley." He kept a pleasant smile on his face until the boy had left, then he scowled, angry at not being able to get into the other realm. This would take careful planning, as well as a lot of research. Hmm, if he played his cards right perhaps he could get Granger's help; yes, all he need do is tell the Weasley's that Harry was in trouble and they would no doubt jump at the chance to save him. He smirked as he got out the locator map again and said his password.

"Locate Ronald Weasley," he commanded, and was relieved when the map showed a dot in the Caribbean along with the exact coordinates for the cruise ship he knew the Weasley's were on. He put the map away again and called Fawkes over to him. "Fawkes, we need to go visit the Weasley family." He told the phoenix the coordinates and the two vanished in a flash of light.

Meanwhile, on the cruise ship…

"I feel so bad for Harry," Ginny said, "I can't believe Dumbledore is making him stay with his relatives!" She was sitting by the pool along with Hermione and Ron, enjoying some time away from the rest of the family.

"Yeah, Mum tried to get permission for him to just use a portkey and have dinner with us tomorrow but Dumbledore wouldn't even allow that!" Ron growled, "I don't know what that old coot's problem is; keeping him with people who hate him on his birthday! At this point I wouldn't even blame Harry if he decided to join You-Know-Who!"

"Ron!" Hermione cried, "Don't say that! Dumbledore may not be perfect, and I know Harry doesn't trust him anymore, but V-Voldemort killed his parents! Of course Harry would never join him!"

"We know Harry wouldn't join Voldemort 'Mione," Ginny soothed the older girl before getting a thoughtful look on her face, "Although, he might decide to become the new dark lord after all of this is over. Actually, he would make a good dark lord, don't you think?"

"Ginny!" Hermione cried, scandalized.

"No, she's right," the three friends looked up as Fred and George joined them, "Harry really would make a good dark lord!"

"Yeah, with us on his side he would conquer the wizarding world in no time!" George agreed with his brother, "You girls can design the robes, and we can create some wicked-looking masks to wear. Hmmm…what should the symbol be?"

"I don't know; will it have to be burned into our skin like the dark mark?" Ginny asked and Fred nodded, "Hmm, then it would need to be something tasteful, that girls will like too; that snake and skull tattoo is just horrible!"

"How about a Griffin?" Ron suggested, "Or a dragon?" His siblings gave him a scathing look. "Okay, so what are your ideas then? And we need to come up with a name for our group, too; something better than 'Death Eaters'."

"I can't believe you guys are planning for Harry to become a dark lord," Hermione shook her head and then sighed, "They say if you can't beat them join them, and you definitely need my help, so…I think our symbol should be a phoenix."

"That's brilliant 'Mione!" Ginny exclaimed, hugging the other girl, "A red and gold phoenix surrounded by stars!"

"No way, that's too corny!" George protested.

"Yeah," Fred agreed, "A phoenix is okay, but red and gold? Not everyone who joins will be from Gryffindor; I'm sure we'll have a few Ravenclaws if nothing else."

"Why don't we have different colors for the different members?" Hermione suggested, "You know, the members of the inner circle will have a certain color for their mark and the outer circle will have a different color; we can even do different colors based on what the members do."

"But wouldn't it be better to keep the inner circle a secret?" Ginny asked, "If we color code the marks then outsiders might catch on."

"That doesn't really matter," Hermione waved her hand airily, "I have no intention of losing; if Harry agrees to this and we go up against the ministry we will plan so that there is no chance of failure. Do you really think I would go along with this if there is the slightest chance of me going to Azkaban?"

"WHAT?" The teens all turned to see an angry Molly Weasley standing behind them, "What are you talking about, going to Azkaban? What did you do?" She glared at the twins.

"They didn't do anything Mrs. Weasley," Hermione said, thinking quickly, "We were just talking about ways to rescue Harry from his horrible family, and I was making sure everyone knows I won't do anything that could get us in trouble."

"Quite right, Hermione dear," she smiled at her before turning an angry look on her sons, "You will not do anything to get your siblings in trouble, understand?" She waited until they nodded before continuing in a softer voice, "Now, as for Harry, don't you worry about him; Albus may want him to stay with his family for a while, but when we get back Arthur is going to talk to Madame Bones; she already assured us that she would get permission for Harry to stay with us. Now, speaking of Albus-he's here and requesting to speak to you children. Why don't you lot get dressed and I'll tell him you're on your way?"

"Okay, thanks Mum," Ginny said. The five teens waited until Molly was out of sight before speaking again. "What do you think Dumbledore wants?"

"He probably wants to ask us to spy on Harry again," Ron scowled, "I can't believe I used to look up to that man."

"I have an idea," Fred grinned, "Why don't you tell Dumbledore you've had a change of heart? Tell him that you understand keeping tabs on Harry is in his best interest?"

"Yeah, if Dumbles thinks he can trust you again he may be willing to let Harry join us," George agreed; "Here you go;" he waved his wand and a moment later everyone was dressed in dry clothes, "No sense wasting time, is there?" The group headed up to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley's cabin and entered to find the couple having tea with Dumbledore.

"Ah, there you are," Dumbledore stood up and smiled as the teens entered, "I trust you are having a good summer so far?"

"Yes sir," they replied in unison.

"Sir? What brings you here?" Hermione asked, and the headmaster's expression became sad.

"Well, I'm afraid I have some bad news for you," he said, "Why don't you sit down?" He waited as Ron and Hermione sat together holding hands and Ginny sat between Fred and George. "Now, I don't want you to panic, but as Harry's friends I think you have a right to know that he's missing."

"Missing?" Mrs. Weasley cried, "What do you mean missing? You assured us that no one who wants to harm Harry would be able to get through the wards!"

"And no one has gotten through the wards," Dumbledore replied, "Or, at least not in any way that we could have expected."

"Please explain, Albus," Mr. Weasley spoke up, "You know Harry is like another son to us, and if he's in danger we want to help."

"Yes, I understand," Dumbledore nodded, "What do you know about the goblin king?"

"You mean the character played by David Bowie in the movie Labyrinth?" Hermione frowned, "What does that have to do with Harry? I mean, I know I let him borrow the movie, but still."

"The goblin king is real 'Mione," Ron spoke up, "He lives in a different realm, and certain people have power to call the goblin king by saying a certain phrase. Muggles can even summon him, although they don't usually understand and so they undergo the challenge of the labyrinth to try and save their child." He stopped and looked at Dumbledore, "But I'm with Hermione on this one, sir; what does the goblin king have to do with Harry?"

"Well, it seems that Harry summoned the goblin king to take his cousin away," Dumbledore allowed a small smile as the twins broke out in laughter, "Yes, but for some reason Harry was taken instead of the young Mr. Dursley. Mr. Dursley does not remember what happened, so I believe that the goblin king, or rather his representative, altered the boy's memory."

"Let me get this straight," Ginny said slowly, seeing as how the twins were still laughing and everyone else was too shocked to say anything, "You're telling us that Harry has been taken to the goblin realm and-what? Is he trapped there permanently or fighting for his freedom; what's going on?"

"I'm afraid I don't know," Dumbledore replied solemnly, "I found the portal to the goblin realm, but I was unable to get in. Also, there are several observation spells placed around Harry's aunt and uncle's house, and the one in the kitchen showed me who took him to the goblin realm." He looked each person in the eyes (Fred and George had finally calmed down by now) before continuing, "I am afraid that Harry is in the company of Draco Malfoy."

"What?" seven people shouted at once, and then all hell broke loose. It was a good ten minutes before the group calmed down enough for Dumbledore to continue.

"I know you are all shocked and worried about Harry," he said, "so am I; I believe that the Malfoy's may be the rulers of the goblin realm, and if that's true Harry may be in very grave danger. That's why I came here; I wanted to ask you for your assistance in finding a way to either get into the goblin realm or get Harry out of it."

"Of course we'll help!" Mrs. Weasley said, "But where should we begin?"

"We need to do research," Hermione spoke up, "I'm sure there are useful books at Grimmauld place and Hogwarts…Professor, isn't there a wizarding library somewhere in London?"

"Yes, Ms. Granger," Dumbledore smiled, "there is a hidden entrance next to Gringotts. I can get some rooms at the Leaky Cauldron for all of you, and you will be able to floo back and forth between the inn, Hogwarts, and Grimmauld Place. I will contact Tom and he should have everything ready within the hour, so just pack up and head over to the Leaky Cauldron, and I will contact you again after supper."

"Professor? Can we go straight to Grimmauld Place?" Hermione asked, "We can just gather the books and bring them back to the inn."

"An excellent idea!" Dumbledore said approvingly, "Why don't you go with Fred and George since they are old enough to apparated; I'm sure the others can collect your things."

"Yes dear," Mrs. Weasley said, "You three go on now, and if you get to the Leaky before us just wait in the dining room." Hermione nodded and went to stand between Fred and George; a moment later they were gone and Mrs. Weasley rushed the rest of her family to get things packed. Somewhere in the midst of the hustle bustle Dumbledore left, but the Weasley family didn't pay him any mind. After a few minutes everything was packed, and Mr. Weasley let the captain know that his family would be missing from the cruise for a couple of days. They gathered around the portkey (it was a ragged teddy bear with a black top hat and red bowtie, if you were wondering) and felt the familiar tug before they landed in the entrance room of the Leaky Cauldron and got their room keys from Tom. The adults were sharing one room, Ginny and Hermione would share the room right next to it, and on the other side of the girls room was a room for the boys to share. Once they got settled in, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley headed off for the London Wizarding Library, while Ron and Ginny went downstairs to wait for Hermione and the twins.

They only had to wait a few minutes before the trio appeared, Hermione carrying three thick books.

"Mum and Dad already got the rooms?" George asked and Ron nodded, "Good; let's go upstairs then." Ginny lead the way upstairs, calling over her shoulder,

"We'll go into the boy's room since it's a bit bigger," she stopped in front of room number eight, "Here we are!" They all trooped in, and the three younger teens arranged themselves on one of the beds, watching as Fred and George cast privacy and locking spells on the room.

"What's going on?" Ginny asked once they were done, "Why all the secrecy?"

"Because we don't trust Dumbles," Fred replied, "Harry may be in trouble, stuck in the goblin realm, but that doesn't mean Dumbledore needs to know everything we find out."

"Do you remember what Harry said at the end of last year, on the train ride home?" Hermione asked, "He said that Dumbledore was so obsessed with the greater good that he was willing to sacrifice anyone and anything to accomplish it; Dumbledore could have stopped Sirius from going to the ministry, or he could have shown up earlier himself, I'm sure. It was an awfully big coincidence that he showed up seconds after Voldemort, don't you think?"

"There's something else too," Ginny said, "Harry didn't get to tell the two of you because of your Prefects duties, and I forgot until now, but Harry went back to Dumbledore's office during the closing feast. He said Luna was with him, and Fawkes spoke to them."

"Dumbledore's phoenix?" Ron questioned and Ginny nodded.

"Yeah, he told Harry a few things about Dumbledore," Ginny informed them, "Evidently Dumbledore wants to be seen as the savior of the wizarding world; he plans to have Harry take care of Voldemort and then take all the credit for himself. Also, Fawkes mentioned something that confused both Harry and me at the time, but it makes more sense now. Fawkes said that Dumbledore wanted to conquer the 'place where goblins dwell'; at the time we thought it was a reference to Gringotts, but now I'm certain he meant the goblin kingdom."

"Do you think this is all just a ruse to get us to find a way into the goblin realm then?" Hermione frowned, "I mean, we don't even know if Harry is missing."

"He's missing," Fred and George said in unison, and then Fred continued, "Remember the Marauder's Family Locator Map? We checked on that and Harry is nowhere in this realm."

"But there's no reason for us to try and find the goblin realm," George said, "Fred and I did some research because we were thinking about opening a fun park and having a labyrinth as one of the attractions-"

"We really just need to find a location," Fred interrupted, "with the success of Triple W we shouldn't have any problems getting a loan."

"-so we researched labyrinths and found a lot of information on the goblins realm," George glared at his twin as he continued, "There is no way for us to interfere with the challenges Harry is going through; basically, he either wins or he loses. The good news is that anyone who takes on the labyrinth is guaranteed safety; even if he loses Malfoy Jr. won't be able to harm him or turn him over to old Voldie unless Harry breaks some major laws of the goblin realm."

"Hmm," Hermione frowned, "so technically Harry is probably safer there than he is here. I mean, if Dumbledore can't get into the goblin realm then there's no way Voldemort will be able to, right?"

"Yeah," Ginny agreed, "I hate to say it, but maybe this whole goblin-thing is a good thing."

"I don't see how being with Malfoy can ever be a good thing," Ron protested and then sighed, "but I guess all we can do is wait; how long do the challenges usually take?"

"Thirteen hours," Hermione replied, reading from a small book in her lap, "So it should all be settled by breakfast tomorrow; now, do we share any information with Dumbledore?"

"No," Ron said firmly, "We keep anything we learn to ourselves; I would even keep it from Mum and Dad for now."

"Agreed," everyone nodded.

"Well, now that's settle," Fred stood up and George followed him to the door, "You keep researching about the goblin realm and customs and such; we're going back to our store to see if we can develop a way to get into the goblin realm."

"Yeah," George agreed, "we may not be able to help Harry, but we can at least be there to support him, no matter what happens. We'll check back in with you after Mum and Dad go to bed, say around midnight." With a nod to the younger teens Fred and George apparated out.

"Well, let's start the research," Hermione said, and handed the books around, "When you go through those, I've got some more in here." She held up a knapsack, "Fred and George spelled them to shrink, and they'll revert to full-size when you pull them out." Ron and Ginny just nodded and then the three teens settled in to find out as much information as possible about the goblin realm.

**************************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note************************************************************************************

**Sorry this one took a bit longer to get out, and I don't feel that it's up to my usual standards, but I really needed to have a chapter to show what was happening in the wizarding world. Don't worry though; we'll be back with Harry, Draco and Luna in the next chapter! For those of you who have seen the movie Labyrinth I'm about to start working on a chapter based loosely on the dream sequence-the part where Sara dances with the Goblin King. Of course, I'm doing this Harry Potter style, so I don't think there will be that many similarities. I'll try to have it up ASAP. Please let me know what you think of the story so far!**


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

"Stupid Malfoy!" Harry muttered, "Stupid desert! Gah! It's so hot out here! How are you holding up Luna?" He broke off from his rant to check on Luna, who was still smiling although she had stopped skipping.

"I'm fine Harry," Luna smiled, "It is rather warm though. Do you know what would make this desert perfect?" She continued without waiting for a response, "An ocean. If we had an ocean here this desert would be the perfect vacation spot, don't you agree?" Luna's voice was airy and distracted.

"If it had an ocean this wouldn't be a desert," Harry pointed out, "Merlin! I wish we had something to drink! It's not good to be out in the heat like this without any water; is Malfoy trying to kill us or something?" They had been wandering through the desert landscape for about half an hour and already Harry was feeling parched.

"Oh, I have something for you!" Luna looked through her purse-really, why did he only notice the purse when she was taking something out of it?-and pulled out a bottle of water and two pieces of fruit. "Do you mind if I eat the dirigible plum?" She asked, keeping the funny-looking radish-type for herself, "You can have the peach."

"Thank you!" Harry accepted the fruit and gave Luna a tight hug, "You're the best Luna! I don't know why your housemates think you're loony; they must be mental!"

"You're welcome," Luna said simply, taking a bite out of her radish-thing, "Why don't we rest over there?" She pointed to a large boulder just off the path that would provide them with some shade and Harry followed her over to it. The small blonde pulled a blanket out of her purse and spread it out in the shade and they sat down to relax.

"We can only rest for a few minutes," Harry said, "Once we're done eating we should really start walking again." He took a sip of water before handing the bottle back to his companion.

"Of course," Luna smiled, "Now eat your fruit." Harry laughed a little at her motherly tone but took a bite of the peach; his eyes widened in surprise as the taste exploded over his tongue.

"Wow! I've never tasted a peach like this before!" He exclaimed as he took another bite, "It's so good, and juicy!" He closed his eyes in enjoyment, and then frowned a little. "Luna?" he opened his eyes only to immediately close them again as the world spun around him, "What's going on? I feel so dizzy…" He felt a gentle hand on his forehead and briefly opened his eyes to see Luna smiling at him softly. "Luna? What…what did you do to me?"

"Shh, Harry," Luna said, "Just close your eyes and rest; this is all for the best-you'll see. Trust me Harry, I'm doing this for you." Harry couldn't focus on her words, but her soft voice soothed him and he found himself slipping into unconsciousness.

Draco sat in his room and watched Harry and Luna make their way through the desert. Unknown to Harry, this desert was an endless loop; the scenery would constantly change but it was impossible to get out of by just walking. The only way to get out was to have outside help or be unconscious; he was actually surprised that Luna didn't tell Harry the secret of the desert but it really just helped to support his earlier conclusion. Then, he saw her hand Harry a peach from the royal gardens and he smirked; yes, Luna was definitely doing something sneaky because that was a dream peach which would knock the Gryffindor unconscious-and allow Draco access to his dreams. Immediately after Harry passed out, Draco saw that dwarf, Ystan, join Luna and the blonde girl gave him a hug. Draco frowned; that dwarf had kidnapped Luna earlier, so why would she…? As he watched the dwarf shimmered and transformed into a certain classmate that Draco recognized very well and the Slytherin smirked; he could definitely use this to his advantage. The viewing screen changed to show Harry's dream so Draco decided he would deal with Luna later; right now he had to put the next step of his plan into action. Draco smiled as he stood up and then he simply stepped through the window and vanished from his room

_There's such a sad love_

_Deep in your eyes, a kind of pale jewel_

_Open and closed within your eyes_

_I'll place the sky within your eyes_

.

"Harry Potter," Dumbledore read the name off the slip of paper. The Great Hall was silent, the staff, students and visitors all in shock at the fourth name being called. "Harry, join the other contestants please." Harry sat in stunned silence until Hermione pushed him off the bench; he looked up at her from his position on the floor and Hermione gave an exasperated sigh before pointing in the direction the other Champions had gone. Harry stood up and walked past the head table in a daze, not noticing the sympathetic looks from the staff. He entered the room where the other Champions-the real Champions, he told himself-were waiting, and saw the expectant looks on the faces of Fleur, Krum and Cedric, but he couldn't seem to find his voice to tell them what happened.

A few minutes later Dumbledore, Karkaroff, and Madame Maxine entered the room closely followed by Professors McGonagall, Snape and Moody. Dumbledore told everyone that Harry Potter was the fourth Champion and bound by magical contract to compete in the Tri-Wizard Tournament. There was a loud outcry from the other contestants, all except for Cedric who gave Harry a worried look. Just when Harry was starting to get a headache from all of the yelling Moody spoke up and told everyone his theory that someone was trying to kill Harry by putting him in a tournament that he did not have enough training to compete in, and Dumbledore shooed the students away so that the adults could talk.

"Harry, wait up!" Harry turned as Cedric called out to him, "Are you okay? You look, I dunno-"

"Terrified?" Harry supplied drily, "That would be because I am. Who entered my name? And how? Do you think Moody is right and that someone wants to kill me?" Harry blushed as he realized he was rambling, "Sorry; I guess I'm more worked up than I thought."

"It's understandable," Cedric said, placing a sympathetic hand on the younger boy's shoulder, "I'm nervous and I'm actually of age; I can only imagine how you must feel. We aren't allowed to actually train together, but I just wanted to give you some advice."

"Oh?" Harry asked warily-was this where Cedric was going to tell him he would be better off jumping from the Astronomy Tower?

"Yeah, you need to get someone to teach you some more spells," Cedric said, "The things you've learned in the past three years won't be enough to keep you safe, but some of your classmates may know more spells that can help you. I would recommend asking a pureblood because they normally have tutors before starting Hogwarts and during the summers."

"Well, the only pureblood's in my year that I'm close to are Ron and Neville," Harry frowned, "and I have better grades than both of them." He noticed Cedric's hesitant look, "What is it?"

"Well, there is someone in your year that I know has a lot of knowledge," Cedric began, "I know you don't really get along with him, but maybe you should call a truce and ask him for help."

"Who?"

"Draco Malfoy," Cedric held up a hand to stop the angry protests, "I'm not saying you have to ask for his help, it's just something I think you should consider." The two boys had reached the Great Hall by now, and Cedric held out a hand, "Good luck, Harry."

"Thanks," Harry clasped his hand briefly, "Good luck to you too, Cedric." He watched as Cedric returned to the Hufflepuff table and then he walked over to the Gryffindor table only to find that Hermione and Ron were no longer there.

"Alright Harry?" Neville asked, "I thought you were going to pass out when they called your name."

"I almost did," Harry admitted, "and then Mad Eye said that he thinks this is a plot against me and that someone would have had to confound the Goblet in order for it to name a fourth Champion. Why me?"

"That's hard luck, Mate," Seamus said, "We'll help you train though; I'm sure McGonagall would even give us use of the restricted section." Dean and Neville nodded their agreement, and Harry smiled at them.

"Thanks guys; we'd better head on up," he stood up from the table with his friends following him, "Did Hermione and Ron already go to the tower? What? What is it?" He got nervous as he saw his housemates exchange an uncertain glance.

"Well, they seem to think that you got someone to enter you into the competition just so you could get more attention," Dean said, "I don't think Hermione really believes that, but since they started dating she is taking Ron's side."

"Oh," Harry said softly, "Well, I'm really tired, so I think I'll just go to bed." He walked ahead of his friends and managed to get in his bed and close the hangings without catching more than a quick glance of his two former best friends.

_There's such a fooled heart_

_Beating so fast in search of new dreams_

_A love that will last within your heart_

_I'll place the moon within your heart_

The next day was the Weighing of the Wands, and Harry had the extreme non-pleasure of meeting reporter Rita Skeeter. The reporter started out by trying to get Harry alone for a one-on-one interview, and Harry was unable to detach her long red fingernails from his arm.

"We'll just talk in here," she said, pulling open a broom closet, "Yes, lovely." She pulled Harry into the closet and pushed him down onto an upturned bucket, "Now Harry, just relax and don't pay any attention to the quill." Harry watched as Rita pulled out a notepad and an acid green quill. "So, how do you feel about-" she was interrupted by the door opening.

"There you are Potter," Harry squinted and saw Draco Malfoy standing in the doorway, "They're waiting for you in Dumbledore's office. I know you like the attention Potter, but really; even you should know better than to give an exclusive interview to trash like that. Come on." Harry let Malfoy grab his arm and pull him out of the closet, both boys ignoring Rita Skeeter's indignant spluttering behind them.

"I have never been so happy to see you Malfoy," Harry smiled at the blonde boy, "That Skeeter woman is horrible! She ambushed me before I could get past the gargoyle."

"Skeeter really is trash," Malfoy said nonchalantly, still holding on to Harry's arm, "If you're interested in giving an interview I can contact a reporter for you."

"Um, no thanks," Harry said, "Despite what you think I really don't want all the attention; I would be perfectly happy to just sit on the side-lines and watch the real Champions go at it." He sighed, "And here I was hoping to have an uneventful year without people trying to kill me. Well, this is my stop; are you coming up?" They stopped outside the stone gargoyle marking the entrance to Dumbledore's office and the blonde hastily let go of Harry's arm.

"No, I was just told to fetch you," Draco scowled, "like I'm some sort of errand boy or something."

"Well, I have to say I'm glad you showed up," Harry said shyly and saw the other boy's eyes widen in surprise. He bit his lip indecisively for a moment before meeting Draco's grey eyes with his own. "Look, we got off to a bad start in first year, and I think that maybe we should put it all behind us. Truce, Malfoy?" He held out his hand, and was rewarded with a small smile from the Slytherin.

"Only if you call me Draco," the blonde said, shaking his hand.

"Okay, Draco," Harry grinned, "and you can call me Harry. I'd better get up there, but I'll see you later."

"See you around, Harry," Draco nodded at him and then walked away, tossing a scowl at Rita as she followed Harry up to the headmaster's office.

The Weighing of the Wands was done without any further problems, although Rita Skeeter did manage to print an article portraying Harry as a young boy who was scared of the tournament but determined to make his dead parents proud. This article served to further alienate Ron and Hermione but, oddly enough, it didn't bother him as much as he thought it would because he had the rest of his dorm mates and Draco on his side. Since the boys had called a truce Harry was able to ask Draco for help researching spells and the Slytherin was proving to be very helpful; there was a little bit of tension with the other Gryffindor's at first, but after Draco saved Harry from a nasty prank orchestrated by Pansy Parkinson they all decided to move on and things went a lot more smoothly.

Two days before the first task, Hagrid asked Harry to sneak down to his hut after dinner, stating that he had to show him something very important. When Harry came back inside an hour later and met his friends in the empty Transfiguration classroom (McGonagall was allowing them to use it to help Harry practice spells) his face was white and his hands were trembling.

"Harry, are you okay?" Draco demanded, "Here, sit down before you fall over." He pushed Harry down into a chair and then summoned a house elf to bring some hot chocolate which he made the younger boy drink. The other boy's arranged some chairs in a circle and sat down as they waited for Harry to calm down. "Okay, now tell us what happened."

"Dragons," Harry whispered, "For the first task we have to get by dragons. Maxime and Karkaroff know which means so will Fleur and Krum; someone needs to warn Cedric."

"I'll go tell him," Neville offered, "Be back in a few minutes." The other boys sat in stunned silence for a moment, then Seamus spoke up.

"Blimey Harry! Dragons?" Seamus exclaimed, "You don't do anything halfway, that's for sure!"

"It's not like this was my idea!" Harry protested, "What? You think I went up to Hagrid and said, 'Please, I don't think the tournament will be dangerous enough, can you bring in some dragons to add a bit more excitement? Thanks Hagrid; you're a real pal.'" He glared at the Irish boy, then heard Draco snickering and turned his glare on the Slytherin.

"Well, it does sound like something you would say," Draco said, "Bloody Gryffindor's never have enough excitement."

"I know, it's so hard to live up to the expectations," Harry said mournfully, "I should have just let the hat put me in Slytherin."

"What?" The three other boys' in the room cried out.

"The hat wanted to put you in Slytherin?" Dean demanded and Harry nodded, "Huh. I always did say you were too sneaky to be a lion." He grinned at Harry who just rolled his eyes.

"Now wait just one bloody minute," Draco broke in, "if the hat wanted to put you in Slytherin, how did you wind up in the Lion's Den?"

"Umm…I asked it to put me there?" Harry said uncertainly. At Draco's glare he became defensive and added, "What? It was your fault, you know. You were a real prat when I first met you, and I didn't want to be in the same house as you. Add to that Hagrid telling me all the bad wizards came from Slytherin and my parents were Gryffindor's and, well, what would you expect me to do?"

"I think we're a little off topic here," Neville spoke up from the doorway, "It doesn't really matter what house Harry is in, we need to find a way to get him past that dragon safely."

"Right," Draco said and he grabbed Harry's hand, "Come on; time to hit the books."

The five boys spent the rest of the evening and half of the next day in the library researching dragons thanks to the pass McGonagall gave them to miss two days of classes; the only requirement was that they turn in all of their work before curfew Friday. By the time lunch came around they were all stressed out and beginning to feel discouraged, so Seamus suggested they take a quick flying break to relax. It was while they were out on the pitch that Draco got an idea; the he was relaxing in the Slytherin stands, admiring Harry's aerial stunts when it came to him.

"Harry! I've got it!" he called to the brunette and Harry flew over to where Draco was sitting, closely followed by the other Gryffindor's.

"What is it Draco?" Harry asked, finding the Slytherin's grin infectious even though he didn't know why the other boy was smiling.

"I know how you can get past the dragon," Draco said proudly, "What is the one thing that you can beat anyone at?" He continued without giving the other boy's a chance to answer, "Flying! You can outfly everyone at this school, so I'm sure you can fly circles around a dragon!"

"But I can't bring my broom with me," Harry frowned.

"No, but you can summon it," Seamus said, starting to get excited, "We've been working on summoning in Charms this whole week, and you're doing really well with it. Why don't I take your broom upstairs and you can practice summoning it?"

"Good idea," Draco approved, "Harry, give him your Firebolt."

"Yes, Bossy," Harry said and stuck his tongue out at Draco who smacked him upside the head. Harry pouted and handed the broom over to Seamus who flew off towards Gryffindor tower. Five minutes later Seamus re-appeared, and Harry cast the summoning charm. "Accio Firebolt!" They waited a few minutes but nothing happened, so he tried it again. After five tries he finally summoned the broom successfully, and Dean took it back up to the tower. For the rest of the afternoon Harry practiced summoning the Firebolt with Seamus and Dean taking turns taking it back up to the tower.

"Okay, good job," Draco said, "You summoned it ten times in a row, so I think you're ready for Saturday. Now, it's almost time for dinner, so I'm going to take a shower."

"Yeah, me too," Harry said, "I think I'll just fly up. Oh, and Draco? After I finish the first task, remind me to tell you how brilliant you are." He grinned at the Slytherin and flew off to Gryffindor tower.

The following day was spent perfecting the summoning charm before lunch, and the boys used the rest of the day to finish the classwork they had missed as well as their homework for the weekend. By dinner time they were all caught up with their work, and the rest of the boys convinced Harry to go to bed early in preparation for the upcoming task.

_As the pain sweeps through_

_Makes no sense for you_

_Every thrill has gone_

_Wasn't too much fun at all_

_But I'll be there for you_

_As the world falls down_

_Falling...Falling down_

_Falling in love_

The morning of the first task dawned bright and clear, and Harry was pleased to see that it was a perfect day for flying. He walked to breakfast with the other boys from his dorm, minus Ron of course, and they joined Draco at the Slytherin table. Harry was too nervous to really be hungry, but Draco cajoled him into eating a small breakfast of toast, bacon and apple juice. Finally the minister stood up and called for the Champions to come outside, and Harry was escorted to the tent by Draco, Seamus, Dean and Neville. The other boy's left him outside the tent with wishes for luck, and then all Harry could do was wait. Ludo Bagman, head of Magical Games and Sports entered the tent to tell the four students the rules and so they could find out which order they would be competing in. One by one they reached into a small draw-string pouch and pulled out a miniature model of the dragon they would be facing; around the neck of each dragon was a wooden sign with a number on it. When Harry's turn came he pulled out a miniature Hungarian Horntail with the number four around it. Harry sat in the tent nervously waiting his turn; he wasn't able to hear the announcer, but he could hear the shouts from the crowd and each moment that passed just made him feel more anxious.

Finally, Harry heard his name called and exited the tent. He walked into a large enclosure and saw the Hungarian Horntail sitting in a nest with five real eggs and one golden egg, which Harry knew was his target. Harry drew his wand and whispered "Accio Firebolt!" He spoke too quietly for the crowd to hear, and he could tell that they were wondering what he was up to. A few minutes later his Firebolt came zooming into view and came to a stop in front of him. Harry mounted the broom-and the crowd disappeared; once on his broom, he was in his element and there was nothing he couldn't do. He flew around the dragons head, taunting it and slowly drawing it away from the nest. The frustrated dragon snapped its jaws at the boy and breathed fire at him, but Harry managed to dodge everything, and the angry dragon finally left her nest to fly after him. This was the chance Harry had been waiting for; without giving it a seconds thought, he flipped over in midair and reversed his direction to fly straight at the nest. The dragon let out an angry roar and blasted a sheet of fire at Harry, but he avoided it and made a dive to grab the egg; the crowd let out a roar of approval loud enough to distract Harry as he was flying out of the enclosure, and the dragon managed to rake its claws across his back. Harry gasped in pain, but maintained both his seat on the broom and his hold on the golden egg. He landed outside the enclosure, hearing the shouts of the dragon handlers behind him, and dismounted; the pain from his back made Harry's legs give out from beneath him and his vision went white as he fell unconscious.

Harry awoke a few hours later to find himself in the hospital wing with his fellow dorm mates and Draco sitting by his bed.

"How did I do?" Harry asked, and was dismayed at how hoarse his voice sounded.

"Harry, you're awake!" Neville exclaimed as Draco helped the injured boy drink some water, "How do you feel."

"Not too bad," Harry replied, "My back doesn't hurt anymore; does that mean I'm all healed up?"

"Not quite," Draco drawled, "Madame Pomfrey gave you a potion to close the scratches, but she said it will be at least one more day before you're completely healed so she wants you to stay here overnight; she'd afraid if she doesn't keep an eye on you you'll just hurt yourself again, and I must say I'm inclined to agree. Really Harry, you get injured _after_ completing the task? You should have been safe at that point."

"That's just how things happen with me," Harry shrugged, "and if Madame Pomfrey thinks I'm staying here overnight she's going to be sorely disappointed; I feel fine and I want to return to the tower."

"Actually, the teachers got together and for some reason all of the Champions have their own rooms for the rest of the year," Dean said, "so you won't be returning to the tower, and you can't go to your new rooms until Dumbledore comes to give you the password, which won't be until tomorrow."

"Well, that's just great," Harry scowled, "I hate staying in the hospital wing!"

"Then maybe you should stop injuring yourself, Mr. Potter," the boys looked up as Madame Pomfrey came out of her office, "Always getting into trouble, aren't you? There was the stone first year, the basilisk second year, last year we had the dementors, and now dragons. I swear they must think I don't work enough! What will they bring in next I wonder?" As she ranted the nurse performed a quick diagnostic scan, and grudgingly told Harry that he appeared to be healed and so he could leave the hospital wing, but only if he promised to rest for the remainder of the weekend. Harry quickly gave his word, and Draco offered to make sure the stubborn Gryffindor actually rested. Feeling somewhat more assured, Pomfrey gave Harry a scrap of paper with a password and the directions to his new rooms. Harry pulled the curtains around his bed and got dressed, and then he set off with his friends to find his new rooms.

About twenty minutes later, they found Harry's new rooms in the third floor corridor that had been forbidden back in first year. They stopped in front of a large picture with an emerald green snake wrapped around a silvery tree, and Harry gave his password-which happened to be "open sesame" in parseltongue, and he directed the guardian of the portrait to let his friends in at any time if they gave the password "aperio"-in English of course since they were unable to speak parseltongue. They entered and found themselves in a sitting room done in jewel tones of emerald green and sapphire blue with splashes of silver and amethyst in the form of throw pillows, rugs, and curtains. The color theme continued into the bedroom.

The group of friend arranged themselves on the couches and chairs in the sitting room until Harry announced that he wanted a bath.

"Here," Draco tossed him the golden egg, "Why don't you see if you can figure this thing out? We opened it earlier-" he grinned at the glare Harry gave him, "-but all it did was screech; Neville overheard Cedric say something about dropping it into the bathtub, so maybe you should give it a try."

"Okay," Harry shrugged, and took the egg into the bathroom with him. He filled the tub up with water and bubbles and just lay back and relaxed for a few minutes before dragging the egg over to him. Taking a deep breath he opened the egg and put it in the water before ducking his head in the water as well. Harry was surprised to hear a hauntingly beautiful voice singing;

"Come seek us where our voices sound,  
>We cannot sing above the ground,<br>And while you're searching, ponder this;  
>We've taken what you'll sorely miss,<br>An hour long you'll have to look,  
>And recover what we took,<br>But past an hour - the prospect's black,  
>Too late, it's gone, it won't come back." (1)<p>

He ducked under the water three more times to make sure he had the song memorized, and then quickly finished his bath so he could tell his friends what he heard. He dried off as fast as possible and dressed in a pair of black boxers and a green bathrobe, which he assumed the house elves must have left for him, and then walked into the sitting room.

"Well, it's got to be mermaids," Draco said after some thought, "There are some in the Black Lake. So, it looks like something important will be taken from you and you will have to go into the lake to get it back. Hmm…we need to find something that will let you breathe underwater for an hour."

"Gillyweed," Neville said promptly, "It's in the herbology book Professor Moody gave me. I'm sure Snape has some-"

"Yes, but he hates me," Harry pointed out, "Maybe I can find some next Hogsmeade weekend…"

"If not I can get Severus to give me some," Draco promised, "He's my godfather, so if I ask him he has to help, although he may require you to prepare potions ingredients or something as re-payment. Well, this has been very productive; you just received the egg today and not only did you solve the riddle, but you have a plan of action as well."

"And the next task isn't even until February," Dean piped up, "You have two whole months to learn spells for use underwater, so this next task should be a piece of cake!"

"Just one thing for you to remember," Draco said, "The riddle says you only have an hour to recover whatever is stolen, but whatever it is will not actually be lost, so don't try anything heroic." Harry stuck his tongue out at the Slytherin and sat down next to him on the small sofa.

"Well, I think I'm about ready for bed," he announced to the group, "It's weird how outsmarting a dragon can really tire you out."

"So that's what you and Draco are calling it," Seamus grinned, and Harry looked at him confused for a moment before he remembered that Draco's name meant 'dragon'; when he caught onto the meaning of the Irish boys words Harry felt himself start to blush furiously.

"Get your mind out of the gutter," he snapped at Seamus, and all the boys-including Draco-laughed, "You guys are so mean to me," Harry pouted, "I narrowly escaped death earlier today, and here you are picking on me; some friends you are! Besides, I'm not gay." He closed his eyes and stretched so he didn't notice the look the other four boys exchanged. "Alright guys, I'm going to bed; you can hang out in here as long as you like and transfigure some beds if you want. 'Night!" His friends called their good-nights back to him and he shut the bedroom door; with all the excitement of the day he fell asleep as soon as he hit the pillow.

The next day found Ron and Hermione apologizing to Harry; he grudgingly accepted the apology but their friendship just wasn't the same. That night Dumbledore announced the Yule Ball to be held over Christmas break, and informed the Champions that they must have dates as they would be doing the opening dance.

The weeks leading up to Christmas break passed quickly, and soon Harry found himself lined up outside the Great Hall with the other Champions, standing conspicuously alone. He looked around nervously, eying the other students that were entering the hall; where was his date? He sighed and shook his head; this would be a lot easier if he knew who his date was and he was beginning to think Hermione was right to worry about his sanity. Really, who in their right mind would go to the Yule Ball with a secret date? Didn't he already have enough to stress over with being the only under-age competitor in the Tri-wizard competition? He should have just asked Ginny to go with him, but he had been worried about ruining their friendship, and then he had received that mysterious invite…

It was a week before the Yule Ball and Harry was sitting alone in the boy's dorm trying to decide who he should ask to be his date; Ron had finally gotten up the courage to ask Hermione so they were going together and Ginny was going with Neville. Maybe he should see if Ginny's friend, the strange blonde girl-Lulu? Luna?-would go with him. Just as he made up his mind to ask Ginny to check with her friend, Hedwig entered through the window and dropped a letter on his bed. Harry opened it curiously and it read:

Harry,

For too long I have admired you from afar, and I have heard that you do not have a date to the Yule Ball. If this is true, I would love to be your date. I am keeping my identity a secret for now, after all it is a masked ball, and if you agree to be my date I will reveal my true identity at midnight after the ball. I know I am asking you to put a lot of trust in an unknown person, but I swear my intentions are true. If you accept my offer please send a reply back via your owl, and I will meet you at the entrance to the Great Hall when you line up with the other Champions for the opening dance. I look forward to dancing with you.

Always,

Your Secret Admirer

After thinking it over for a few minutes Harry decided to accept the date request and sent Hedwig off with his reply. And that's how he got where he was now, seconds away from the start of the opening dance and without a partner. Just as Harry was about to give up hope, he felt someone take his hand and looked up to smile at his date; the smile quickly turned to a look of confusion, however when he realized that his partner was a boy. Before Harry could say anything the music started and he found himself being led into the Great Hall behind the other couples.

As a stunned Harry allowed himself to be led around the dance floor, he sized up his partner. The boy was taller than Harry by a few inches and had a pale, alabaster complexion; he was wearing black dress robes over a pale grey Muggle-style tuxedo and a silver mask served to cloak his features, although Harry was able to make out silvery-eyes. The boy's hair was a pale blonde, and Harry felt that he should know this person, but he just couldn't place him. The stranger's pink lips were upturned in a sort of mocking smile, and Harry found himself blushing at the thought of those lips brushing his own. Harry dropped his gaze from his date's face to look at the other boy's shoulder instead, hoping that the "mood-lighting" set up by the headmaster would help to hide his blush.

_I'll paint you mornings of gold_

_I'll spin you valentine evenings_

_Though we're strangers till now_

_We're choosing the path between the stars_

_I'll leave my love between the stars_

The song changed to a haunting melody, and Harry let his partner lead him into a series of turns until the brunette was dizzy and clinging to his date to avoid losing his balance. The blonde chuckled lightly at him, and Harry was entranced by the musical sound. Funny, before his date had shown up Harry would have sworn that he was straight, but now he felt intoxicated by the stranger's closeness and he wanted more. Harry vaguely recognized the fact that there were more people on the dance floor now, but his entire focus was on the being whose arms were holding him possessively.

'This is insane!' Harry told himself, 'I don't even know who this guy is; how can I be so attracted to him? Oh, but he smells so good, like cinnamon and vanilla…' He frowned as this thought triggered a memory but it was gone before he could pursue it, and he felt the blood rush to his head as the mysterious boy spun him into a sudden dip before pulling him close again.

As the dance went on, Harry let himself get lost in the music and the strong arms wrapped around him; he was so caught up in the moment that he didn't even realize he was being drawn out of the Great Hall until he felt the cold winter air on his skin. Blinking out of his daze, Harry looked around and saw that his partner has brought him to a secluded garden with a frozen fountain in the middle of it.

"What-why did you bring me out here?" Harry asked.

"Shh," the other boy said, placing one long, pale finger against his lips, "It's almost midnight; before I remove my mask can I have one kiss?" Harry frowned; that voice was very familiar, he really should recognize it…but he still felt muddled from the music and the dancing, and the knowledge was just out of reach. "Just one kiss?" With a start Harry realized that the other boy was still waiting on an answer, tracing Harry's lips with his finger. The brunette's voice caught in his throat and all he could do was nod his consent; his mysterious partner flashed him a brilliant smile before cupping the back of Harry's head and leaning in to press their lips together. The kiss was very sweet and chaste, just a gentle brushing together of lips that left Harry shivering from something other than the cold. Without making a conscious decision, Harry wrapped his arms around the stranger's neck and the blonde boy responded by wrapping his free arm around Harry's waist and drawing him closer. Harry sighed into the kiss, and then opened his mouth wider to admit the tentatively questing tongue begging permission. The kiss remained gentle even as the two boys' explored each other's mouths and Harry thought to himself that this was perfect, everything that a first kiss should be. This thought made him frown again and pull away;

'First kiss?' Harry thought, "That's not right; I kissed Cho last year, didn't I? No, wait; I didn't even speak to Cho last year. What's going on?' Harry opened his eyes-when did he close them?-and met a grey gaze that was full of curiosity. Harry gave the other boy a small smile and pecked him on the lips before stepping out of the warm embrace.

"It's after midnight," he said softly, "so are you going to remove your mask?"

"Of course," the blonde replied, but Harry could tell he was nervous, "Just, before I reveal myself, I want you to know that this was the best night of my life, and I hope you are willing to give me a chance." Harry gave him an encouraging smile and waited breathlessly as the boy removed his mask, and the brunette found himself face-to-face with-

"Draco Malfoy?" Harry cried, backing away, "What-why? I mean, when did you-?" Draco laughed softly and silenced Harry's questions with a finger against his lips.

"Like I said in my letter, I've liked you for a long time now," Draco smiled at the other boy, "I was going to ask you in person, but then you said you weren't interested in boys and I almost gave up; then it got close to the ball and you still didn't have a date, so I took a chance. Are you disappointed?"

"No," Harry shook his head, "a little confused maybe, but not disappointed. I guess I don't know myself as well as I thought I did," he mused and shook his head before meeting Draco's grey eyes with his own emerald gaze, "I'm glad you asked me out tonight, because this was perfect. Walk me to my room?" Draco nodded and took Harry's hand, escorting him up to the Gryffindor's private chambers.

"Next Hogsmeade weekend," Draco said, as they stood outside the painting concealing the entrance to Harry's rooms, "Will you go with me? On a date?"

"Yes," Harry replied, "I'd love to. Well, goodnight then." He said his password and turned to enter his room, but Draco stopped him with a hand on his arm. Harry looked back at the Slytherin curiously, and Draco leaned in to give him a chaste kiss.

"Goodnight Lion," Draco said and then turned and walked away, quickly disappearing around the corner.

_As the pain sweeps through Makes no sense for you Every thrill has gone_

_Wasn't too much fun at all_

_But I'll be there for you_

_As the world falls down_

_Falling...Falling down_

_Falling in love_

*********************************************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note*****************************************************************

**Woo-hoo! Another chapter down! And we're in the dream/hallucination scene; I went through three versions of this chapter before I was satisfied, so I really hope you guys like it! I thought a re-imaging of the Tri-wizard tournament would make a good dream sequence and fit in nicely with Draco's plans to seduce Harry. There is some slight OOCness, but it's a dream so that's okay. Next chapter we will continue the dream sequence, and I also plan to have Draco give Harry his birthday present and reveal the identity of Luna's friend if everything goes according to plan; can you guess who it is? Once again I want to thank everyone for the kind reviews and to answer a few questions:**

**The Gringotts goblins aren't under the Malfoy's rule bcz they left the other realm before the curse was placed on their kin, so they won't tell Draco about Dumbles stealing from Harry, but I do have plans to make sure Dumbledore gets what he deserves. Also, yes, this story will continue after the Labyrinth challenge is over; I expect to have quite a few loose ends to tie up. ^_^ **

***The lyrics are sung by David Bowie in the Labyrinth movie; song is titled "As the World Falls Down."**


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

*Author's note: Just a quick reminder that Harry is still stuck in his enchanted sleep.

The weeks after the Yule Ball passed quickly, and soon it was the morning of the second task. Over the past few weeks Harry and Draco had become very close, so he was rather worried when he couldn't find the Slytherin anywhere.

"I'll bet he was taken for the challenge," Dean said, "We all assumed that they would take an object from you, but taking a person makes things much more interesting, don't you think?"

"I'll tell you what I think," Harry growled as they made their way down to the lake, "I think I'm going to kill Dumbledore." The boys were silent the rest of the way down, and Harry didn't speak again the entire time he was waiting for the challenge to begin. The challenge itself was very easy; Harry took the Gillyweed which gave him temporary gills and flippers, along with webbed fingers, and swam to the bottom of the lake. Once there, he saw Draco floating unconscious, tied to a large rock along with three other people. Harry ignored the other captives and freed Draco, cutting the ropes with a sharp rock he found lying on the bottom of the lake. He towed Draco back up to the surface, and as soon as his head was above water the blonde boy awoke gasping. He help onto Harry as they made their way to shore, and the two boy's allowed Madame Pomfrey to coddle them as they waited for the other Champions to surface.

Harry didn't pay much attention to the proceedings other than to notice that he was the first one back and thus awarded the highest number of points; he was too busy making sure Draco was okay. For his part the blonde just rolled his eyes and smiled at the Gryffindor before finally silencing them with a kiss. Once all the points were awarded, Dumbledore announced that the next task would take place June 24th and that Harry, since he had the most points, would have a small advantage over the other Champions. They were not told what the final task would be, only that they should take the next few months to prepare.

Over the next four months Draco, along with Harry's other friends, helped him research and practice as many defensive and offensive spells as they could find. In between training, Harry spent most of his free time with Draco and found himself dreading the separation that summer would bring. Whenever he brought this up to Draco the blonde merely smiled mysteriously and told him not to worry about it.

The morning of the final task was to take place after dinner, and all the Champions were given the day off of classes to spend time with their families. Harry was excited to see that Sirius was there, even if his godfather did have to hide under a glamour. They spent the day discussing spells and hexes, and Harry also informed Sirius about his boyfriend, which led to a lot of teasing.

The day passed quickly, and soon Harry was hugging his godfather and kissing Draco before heading out to the quidditch pitch where a large hedge maze had been grown for the final challenge. As he stood waiting with the other champions, Harry studied the maze and frowned; why did this seem so familiar? And why did he have such a bad feeling about the final task? Every time he looked at Cedric he had to fight back the urge to warn the older boy about…something; he didn't even know what was going to happen, but he knew it wouldn't be good.

Harry was startled out of his thoughts by the sound of the whistle that signaled him to enter the maze. Once inside, Harry turned left and soon left the entrance far behind. As he traversed the maze he hear three more blasts of the whistle alerting him that the other Champions had entered the maze as well and he picked up his pace. The maze was dark and creepy, with a cool mist covering the path; after walking for about ten minutes without encountering any obstacles Harry began to worry. He used his wand to cast a locator spell and adjusted his route so that he was headed in the right direction, and came across a dementor.

"Expecto Patronum!" Harry cast the spell but nothing happened, and then he realized that he didn't hear the usual screams either, "Oh! A boggart; riddikulus!" With a crack the boggart was gone, and Harry continued on his way. He came across and overcame some Devil's Snare, a chimera (which he managed to stun), and a sphinx before he reached the center of the maze, where there was an acromantula waiting. Harry instinctively rolled to the ground under the giant spider and cast a stunning spell at its exposed under-belly; when he was sure that the spider was immobilized he cast incarcerous on it as well and made sure it was bound tight before turning to face the gleaming trophy sitting on a platform in the center of the labyrinth. To his shock, he saw Cedric entering the clearing from the other side and knew it was going to be a race; the bad feeling he'd had all day came back with even more intensity, and Harry knew that he didn't want to let Cedric touch that cup, so he called out to the older boy, "Cedric! Stop! Something isn't right!"

"Nice try Harry," Cedric grinned as he ran for the cup, "I'm not about to let you win that easily!" Harry ran towards the cup as well, but Cedric was faster than him and reached it first; just as the other boy was about to touch the handle everything froze.

"Harry," the Gryffindor spun around to see a small blonde girl smiling at him, "You don't have to do this Harry; you don't have to go through this again."

"Luna?" Harry questioned, then frowned as the blonde girl nodded, "But…how do I know you? I've seen you with Ginny, but we've never met. What's going on? Something really bad is about to happen, isn't it?"

"This isn't real," Luna said, "He didn't mean to hurt you, but you need to get out of here before you're forced to re-live one of the worst moments of your life; he can only influence the dream up to a certain point, but the rest is up to you. Here," she held out what looked to be a Swiss Army Knife, and Harry took it hesitantly, "This is a very special gift from Sirius; I'm sorry I hid it from you earlier but it was necessary. This knife has an attachment-"

"-that can undo any lock," Harry finished, then looked around, "But…there aren't any doors." Luna smiled and waved her wand at one of the hedges and a glowing yellow rectangle appeared.

"I hope you can forgive me," she said, "Now hurry; you've spent enough time in here and the cinnadoms are stampeding again." Harry smiled uncertainly at the younger girl before walking over to the glowing rectangle and using the knife to open it. Harry walked through the opening…

…and found himself lying in the shade of a boulder next to a bubbling stream, with soft hands carding through his hair. Looking up, Harry found himself looking into Luna's dreamy blue eyes; with a start he remembered the piece of fruit she had given him and pushed away from the blonde girl.

"You tricked me," he accused, and Luna gave him a sad smile.

"I had to," she informed him, "The only way to get out of the desert is to be unconscious; the dreams induced by the peach I gave you normally last for two or three hours, but I made sure to wake you up after only an hour. I really am sorry about the knife, but I knew I would need it to get you out of the dream. Are you angry with me?"

"I-I don't know what to think," Harry raised his hand to ruffle his hair in agitation, "I trusted you Luna, and you've been keeping secrets from me; I don't even know who's side you're really on."

"I want what's best for you, of course," Luna replied, "I'm just doing what the blibbering humdingers told me to do."

"Hello cousin," Harry and Luna looked up to see Draco leaning against a nearby tree, "You have been up to some sneaky games today, haven't you?"

"Hello Draco," Luna smiled, "You have your plans, and I have mine."

"Wait, cousin?" Harry asked, "Luna, Draco is your cousin and you never told me? Why?"

"It didn't seem important," Luna replied, "He's a bit of an embarrassment really; do you know he can't even see snargles?" Harry shook his head but gave her a small smile before turning to address Draco.

"So Mal-er, Draco, what do you want?"

"I'm actually here on official business," Draco said in an expressionless tone, before raising his voice, "Ystan!" He called as he stepped away from the tree, and a few minutes later the dwarf appeared. "You see, Harry, Luna has broken one of the laws of the realm; no outsiders are to have any communication with the petitioner. Ystan here isn't who he appears to be, are you?" Draco pulled out his wand and pointed it at the dwarf, "Finite incantum!" Harry watched in stunned silence as the dwarf stretched up and thinned out until Neville Longbottom was standing in front of them.

"Neville?" Harry asked, "What are you doing here? I know you aren't one of the fae. And…wait, why did you kidnap Luna earlier? I don't understand."

"I brought him here," Luna said quietly, "I needed his help to make sure everything happened the way it was supposed to; everything Neville did today he did because I asked him to, although I didn't tell him all the details; some things are best kept secret."

"Sorry Harry," Neville looked uncomfortable, "Luna asked for my help, and she said everything was to help you, so I really didn't ask any questions because I know you trust her."

"Well, I'm afraid that trust was misplaced," Draco smirked, "I didn't realize it at first, but everything she did today actually helped me; I thought it was really brilliant when you pushed Harry into the devil's snare-if it weren't for you he probably would have avoided that trap. Also when you left the oubliette you convinced him to take the path leading to the desert," he turned to look at Harry, "If you had followed your instincts you would have been at the castle already; of course you also would have missed out on that lovely dream, and that would have been a pity; I know I enjoyed it."

"Wait, you were actually in the dream with me?" Harry cried, "That's…I just…ah! Everything is so screwed up!" He rounded on Luna, "You said you were helping me, but all you did was lead me into traps; how is that helpful? You were working with Draco the whole time to keep me trapped here, weren't you?"

"I know you don't understand," Luna began with tear-filled eyes, "but I really was trying to help you. Not everything is as it seems Harry; sometimes what we think we want isn't what we need, and what we need is the last thing we ever thought we would want. I know you don't trust me anymore, but I hope you'll forgive me when all this is over." She gave Harry a watery smile before taking Neville's hand, "I'm sorry I got you in trouble as well Neville, but everything happens for a reason."

"That's very touching," Draco rolled his eyes, "but since you have admitted to the crimes, I must administer the punishment." He waved his wand and Luna and Neville disappeared into the portal that appeared beneath their feat.

"What did you do to them?" Harry demanded.

"Nothing much," Draco replied, "Since Neville isn't part of our realm he will be imprisoned for the rest of the summer but I will make sure he is released before September first. Luna, however, knew that she was breaking the law, so not only will she be imprisoned for the rest of the summer, but she will be restricted to her chambers for the next two years; this, of course, excludes the school year-she still needs to complete her education so she will be allowed to return to Hogwarts."

"Two years?" Harry cried, "Isn't that a bit excessive? The poor girl is only fifteen, and all she did was disguise Neville as a dwarf!"

"She broke the law," Draco said patiently, "this is the standard sentence. Why do you care anyway? I thought you were angry at Luna for betraying you."

"I'm upset at what she did," Harry confirmed, "however I know that she thought she was doing the right thing. Luna…she doesn't see things the same way everyone else does, so I can't even begin to understand her motives, but I believe that she didn't intend to betray me. So, how do I get my friends out of the dungeons?" Draco shook his head slowly, but Harry could tell the blonde was fighting back a smile.

"You really can't help but save people, can you?" Harry scowled at him and Draco finally did smile, "Well, I'll tell you what; if you can find them before your time is up and get them to the door leading out of this realm then they will be free to go. Now, before I let you continue on, I have something for you." He held out a small rectangular box wrapped in green paper that had silver snitches flying on it and was tied with a silver bow. "I heard you and Luna discussing your birthday, and I thought I would give you a present since you can't be with your friends." Harry took the present hesitantly but didn't make a move to open it.

"No strings attached to this gift?" he asked, "No future forfeits or anything like that?"

"No strings attached," Draco confirmed, "It is simply a birthday present; now open it." Harry gave the blonde one last searching look before ripping off the paper; the box beneath it was a black velvet jewelry box, and Harry gasped when he opened it. Inside the box was a beautiful amulet, and he could feel the power coming off it in waves. The amulet itself was a black stone shot through with a myriad of colors, surrounded by diamonds in an intricate silver setting and hanging from a silver chain.

"This is beautiful," Harry breathed, "and powerful; I can feel the magic! What does it do?" He looked up to meet intense ice-blue eyes.

"It's an old family heirloom," Draco replied, "One of a kind, and it has the power to let you go back to any point in time and speak to lost loved ones without worrying about accidentally changing the future. Basically, you can go to the past and have a conversation with anyone-your parents for example-and when you return to the present they will have forgotten your visit so nothing you do will affect the current time-period, but you would have a chance to get to know your parents, grandparents-there's no limit to how far back in the past this amulet can take you." He reached out and touched the black stone, "This is a black opal, very rare and extremely powerful and it is what holds the time-travelling spell."

"This…this is too much," Harry protested, "I can't accept this from you Draco."

"You can and you will," Draco said matter-of-factly, "It's very rude to refuse a gift, and may even result in a curse on your family name, so I would advise you to simply thank me. Besides, if I have my way you'll be with me once this is over anyway."

"Way to ruin the mood," Harry rolled his eyes, "and here I thought you were just giving me this gift out of the goodness of your heart." He lifted the amulet out of the box and undid the clasp before Draco reached for it.

"Here, let me," Draco took the amulet from him and Harry bowed his head so the blonde could put it around his neck, "There; the clasp is magic so it won't fall off accidentally." Harry looked up again and, since Draco hadn't moved back, he found the blonde's face just inches from his own. "You really do have beautiful eyes," Draco said softly and Harry felt his face heat up before the blonde added, "I hope someday you'll get rid of those atrocious glasses." Harry laughed softly and leaned forward to give the Slytherin a quick peck on the lips before stepping away.

"Thank you," He smiled, clutching the amulet, "This is the best present anyone has ever given me," he grinned cheekily, "even if it is just part of a plot to try and make me give up." Draco swiped at his head but Harry ducked and spun away laughing, "Now then, O Great Prince; since you took my guide away, perhaps you would like to point me in the direction of your castle?"

"If you can't see the castle then I think you need new glasses," Draco smirked and Harry turned to see the castle behind him.

"Oops," he said, "I should really learn to pay better attention. Well, thanks again for the present Draco; I guess I'll see you inside for the final confrontation?"

"Of course," Draco nodded, "and make sure you remember your lines; I'm looking forward to hearing your version of the repudiation speech." The clock struck ten times, and Draco stepped back into the shadows and disappeared with a whispered, "I hope you're ready Harry, because this game is drawing to a close." Harry stared at the spot where Draco had disappeared for a moment before shaking his head and starting off down the path to the castle, his mind pre-occupied with thoughts of Draco Malfoy.

'He really is much different than he acts in school,' Harry mused, 'I actually find myself wishing that fourth year really did happen the way I dreamed about it; I definitely enjoyed the dream-Yule Ball better than the real one! And…I think that I really like Draco; he's still snarky and conceited, but I've seen another side of him since I've been here, and I'd really like to get to know _this_ Draco better.' He sighed inwardly as he considered his options, 'Well, I still don't plan to lose; I've never lost to Draco and I can't start now because that would give him too much power over me, but I don't want to just solve the labyrinth and then never look back either. Maybe he'll let me stay after I solve the labyrinth-wait; didn't that contract say I could stay?' Harry began to smile, 'Yes, so I will save Neville and Luna, solve the labyrinth, and then stay here so that Draco and I can get to know one another better. I wonder if this was Luna's intention all along, to give me time to see that there's more to Draco than the mask he shows the rest of the world.'

Harry continued to ponder the mysteries that were Draco Malfoy and Luna Lovegood as he made his way to the castle. This part of the journey only took about half an hour and he didn't encounter any obstacles, so he was extra careful as he entered the castle, keeping his senses alert for a trap. The Gryffindor looked around the entrance hall, but there were no doors, only a spiral stair case directly across from him, so Harry carefully made his way to the second landing. On the second floor was a hallway lined with doors on either side, all of them perfectly identical, so Harry counted the doors as he walked down the hall and stopped at the seventh door on the right. Taking a deep breath, Harry pushed open the door to reveal a pitch-black room; the light from the hallway didn't penetrate the darkness at all, so Harry-being a head-strong Gryffindor-reached his hand in to feel along the wall for a torch bracket or a light switch. No sooner did his hand disappear into the murky darkness than he felt another hand wrap around his wrist and pull; before he had a chance to scream Harry was yanked into the black room and the door slammed shut behind him, leaving the hallway empty and eerily quiet once again.

"So you're saying Draco Malfoy has kidnapped Harry and trapped him in another realm?" Minerva asked, and Dumbledore nodded.

"I'm afraid so," he said sadly, "I activated the viewing spell in the Dursley's kitchen to confirm it. I'm very worried for Harry, trapped in another realm without his friends and at the Malfoy's mercy."

"That is absurd," Severus snapped, "Mr. Potter may indeed be in another realm with young Malfoy, but my godson could not possibly have kidnapped him; it is forbidden as you would know if you read any books on the Fae Realm." He turned to address McGonagall, "In order for an outsider to be brought into the Fae-or "goblin"-Realm they have to first call upon the goblin king and then agree to the challenge of the labyrinth. If Mr. Potter is in the other realm he must have called upon the goblin king; he is just lucky that Draco responded instead of Lucius. Potter is in no danger; as a petitioner he will be protected while he attempts to solve the labyrinth, and the rules of the Fae Realm prevent anyone from handing him over to an enemy. All we can do is wait for the thirteen hours to pass so that we can talk to Draco and Mr. Potter to see exactly what happened."

"You're right, Severus," McGonagall nodded, "He should only have a few more hours left before his time is up, so I will make us some tea while we wait. Oh, and Albus, I ran into Madame Bones earlier today, and she said that it is the decision of the ministry that Harry be allowed to spend the remainder of his summer with whomever he chooses." She was busy conjuring up some tea and snack so she missed the angry glint in the headmaster's eyes, but Snape did not.

"I will speak to Madam Bones on this matter tomorrow," Dumbledore said, "I don't feel that it is safe for him to leave the protection of the wards at his relative's house."

"As of tomorrow the decision will be out of your hands," Snape said mildly, sipping on the tea McGonagall provided, "If I remember correctly, Lily stated in her will that if her, James and Sirius were all dead before Harry's sixteenth birthday he was to be given full independence and be treated as an adult."

"You haven't told anyone else this, have you?" Dumbledore demanded and Snape shook his head, "Good, because I don't intend to let Harry know; I feel that the boy must remain in his aunt's custody until he reaches his majority next year, for the greater good-and his own safety, of course."

"Of course, Albus," McGonagall agreed, "We all want what's best for the boy." Snape didn't reply but inclined his head and then stood up, setting his tea cup down.

"I'm off to my chambers," he announced, "When the boy's get back please send them to me once you have finished speaking to them." He didn't wait for an answer but strode from the room, his robes billowing behind, and left the headmaster and deputy headmistress to wait for the wayward students.

Just after midnight, Hermione and Ginny were awakened by the sound of someone tapping on the wall between their room and the one that the boys were sharing. Ginny pulled a housecoat over her nightgown and motioned for a confused Hermione to do the same, before walking over to the wall and tapping it from her side. A few minutes later, a door appeared and when it was opened the girls found themselves looking into the boy's room.

"We've got it!" Fred said triumphantly once the connecting door was closed, "We figured out the formula to open a portal to the goblin realm!"

"Well what are we waiting for?" Ron demanded, "Let's go!"

"Not so fast, Ronniekins," George said, "We can't open the portal at just any old time; it has to be opened at a moment of transition."

"When the sun rises," Hermione spoke up and the twins nodded, "That makes sense; the most magical times of day are always sunrise and sunset; what time is dawn?"

"It will be at 5:22 am," Fred said, "We already checked. So, you girls get some rest, and if Harry isn't back by 4:30 we'll wake you so we can do the ceremony to go find him."

"I can't believe you woke us up just to tell us to go back to bed," Ginny complained, "Why didn't you just wake us up at 4:30?" The twins just grinned in their annoying fashion and Hermione rolled her eyes, grabbing Ginny's hand and pulling her back to their room.

"Okay, we'll see you guys in a few hours," She said, "and if Harry shows up before then, let me know; I don't mind being woken up." Ginny just stuck her tongue out and stomped over to her bed, leaving Hermione to giggle after her, "Good night guys!" There was a chorus of good nights as the teens settled in to go back to sleep, eagerly anticipating the return of their friend or an upcoming rescue mission; both options were equaling appealing to the adventurous Gryffindor's.

*****************************************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note**************************************************************************** **

**Another chapter up, and we're getting towards the end of the story. Or, at least the labyrinth part of the story! Once the labyrinth challenge is finished, we still have to get Sirius, take care of Dumbles, Voldie, Lucius, and I think Harry will need to use his birthday gift at least once, don't you? And now, I need your help! What do you guys think aHarry should encounter in the "Room of Darkness"? Should it be monsters or bad memories? Or maybe something else? ****Until next time, remember: reviews are love! **


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

_Last time…_

_Taking a deep breath, Harry pushed open the door to reveal a pitch-black room; the light from the hallway didn't penetrate the darkness at all, so Harry-being a head-strong Gryffindor-reached his hand in to feel along the wall for a torch bracket or a light switch. No sooner did his hand disappear into the murky darkness than he felt another hand wrap around his wrist and pull; before he had a chance to scream Harry was yanked into the black room and the door slammed shut behind him, leaving the hallway empty and eerily quiet once again…_

"Hey!" Harry yelled, "Let me go!" He dragged his feet and struggled against the unseen hands as he was pulled further into the darkness, but his struggles didn't deter his unknown captor in the least. "Dammit! Let go of me!" The hands suddenly disappeared and Harry stumbled, falling to his knees as the path in front of him was illuminated by small flames on either side of it. At first Harry thought the flames were floating by themselves, but on closer examination he discovered there were actually black candles lining the pathway. On either side of the path there was more darkness, and the candles were only in front of him, making him hesitate to turn back. "Well, I guess I have no choice but to go this way then," Harry sighed and started off down the path.

After a few minutes Harry saw the outline of a door in front of him; he stopped in front of the door and eyed it suspiciously. The door itself was unassuming, just a simple wooden door with a cut glass window like you would see on the front of any house, but it was standing in the middle of the path without anything holding it up, and Harry just knew there was something bad behind it. He attempted to walk around the door, willing to risk falling off the path, but there was an invisible wall that kept him on the path. Harry glared angrily at the door for a moment before taking a deep breath and opening it; he stepped inside…

…And found himself standing in a living room, where a man and a woman were sitting together on a comfy-looking couch. Harry looked closer, and saw that the couple was his parents, Lily and James Potter; they were enjoying some hot cocoa and just talking softly, then a baby started crying and Lily went upstairs. A few seconds after she disappeared up the stairs, the front door was blasted off its hinges, and James jumped up, startled.

"It's him!" James shouted, "Lily; get Harry and run! He's found us!" Harry watched helplessly as Voldemort entered the house, grinning evilly, and advance on his father. James didn't appear to have his wand with him, so he was helpless against the dark wizard that had invaded his home.

"You've made this too easy for me," Voldemort said in his high, cold voice, "It doesn't have to be this way you know; just join me and I will allow you and your wife to live. I will, of course, require your son as payment for past transgressions."

"Never!" James cried; he threw a potion at the dark wizard and jumped over the couch, running for the stairs. The potion exploded in a dark cloud, blocking out Voldemort's vision, and James made it to the second landing before the other wizard recovered.

"You think your petty tricks will stop me?" Voldemort laughed as he apparated up to the landing, blocking James' way to the nursery, "You were foolish to challenge me Potter, but it is over now. Avada Kedavra!"

"No!" Harry cried, as a flash of green light left Voldemort's wand and hit James in the chest; his father's eyes widened in shock before he fell to the ground, lifeless, and Voldemort continued on his mission of destruction. Harry didn't move but somehow found himself in the nursery watching his mother try to open the window while holding Baby Harry. "Please don't make me watch this," he whispered, but his pleas went unanswered as Voldemort blasted the door open, and Lily turned around to face the threat.

"Please, not Harry!" she pleaded, "He's just a baby!"

"Stand aside you silly girl," Voldemort said, "I have no need to kill you; just give me the baby and you shall live."

"No!" Lily cried, clutching her baby, "Please! Kill me instead! Kill me, not Harry; not Harry!"

"Very well," Voldemort raised his wand and once more said the killing curse, and Harry watched as his mother was murdered, Baby Harry still in her arms. Baby Harry started screaming, but the scene faded and sixteen-year-old Harry found himself back at his aunt and uncle's house. He was just in time to see his five-year-old self use accidental magic, causing a frying pan of hot grease to fly across the kitchen and splatter all over his cousin.

"Aaah!" Dudley screamed, "Mummy! It hurts Mummy!"

"Oh, my poor little Diddykins!" Petunia soothed Dudley, giving him a kiss, "Hush now; Mummy will make it all better."

"Freak! Look what you did to my son!" Vernon thundered, backhanding young Harry, "I promised I would stamp the freakiness out of you, and that's what I intend to do!" He pulled Harry's pants down and began to spank him, not stopping until the little boy was a sobbing mess. "Now boy; get in your cupboard and stay there until I say otherwise!"

"Y-yes Uncle," Harry sobbed, "P-please t-tell Dudley I'm sorry; I d-don't m-mean to be bad." Young Harry went to his cupboard with his head down, and Vernon shut and locked the door before going back to the kitchen where the real Harry saw Petunia give Dudley a potion that made the burns disappear.

"Petunia used magic?" Harry gaped, "But-how? When? I thought she hated magic!"

"How is Dudley?" Vernon asked his wife.

"He's fine," Petunia smiled down at her son, but then frowned, "Vernon, don't you think you were a little rough on Harry? We know he didn't mean to do it, and Dudley _did_ throw a cup at him first."

"I know," Vernon sighed, "I don't like it any better than you do, but you heard what that old man said! If we don't give him regular beatings and talk down to him he is likely to become evil like that Lord What's-his-name; we tried to raise him as Dudley's equal for five years, but he just keeps getting worse! When Harry is older, and the old man says the danger has passed we can explain everything to him; there's only six years until he starts that special school, so I'm sure everything will be better by then."

"I hope so Vernon," Petunia said, casting a sad glance at the cupboard as they headed upstairs, "I really hope so."

"No way!" Harry said, watching this all in disbelief, "They were never nice to me! This has to be fake!" The memory faded out, and then he was in another memory where the Dursley's were all three sitting in the living room and having tea with Dumbledore.

"I'm sorry to say, but Harry is in more danger of going dark than ever before," Dumbledore was saying, "I need you to continue to treat him as inferior; it has helped cut down on the accidental magic, correct?"

"Well, there haven't been as many incident's in the past couple of years," Petunia said slowly, "but I remember Lily started controlling her magic better at this age as well. Must we really continue to treat Harry so poorly and lie to him? He's family, and I loved my sister; I hate spouting such trash about her!" Dudley and Vernon each took one of Petunia's hands to comfort her and she offered them a weak smile in gratitude.

"I know it's difficult," Dumbledore replied, "and I really hate having to do this to you, but Harry will be starting school soon and it is imperative that we keep him on the right path. In fact, once he goes to sleep tonight I will be altering any memories he has from before we started this treatment. Don't worry; when all this is over Harry will thank you for all that you have done for him. Now, I'm afraid I must take my leave; Good night Dursley's!"

The scene faded again and Harry sat in darkness for a few minutes while he contemplated what he just saw. He was very angry with Dumbledore for keeping secrets and manipulating him, but Harry still couldn't bring himself to believe that the headmaster had actually encouraged-no, forced!- the Dursley's to treat him so badly as the vision suggested. Harry shook his head in confusion; he wanted to believe that the Dursley's really loved him, but, at the same time, he didn't want to believe that Dumbledore was that far gone. As he was contemplating this, Harry started to notice misty shapes around him, and he saw a younger version of himself suddenly appear, gripping a cup along with Cedric Diggory.

"No!" Harry shouted, "I refuse to watch this again!" He turned and ran from the graveyard, but he still heard that familiar voice say "Kill the spare." and he saw a flash of green light out of the corner of his eyes. Harry didn't stop to look but just continued running, until he found himself back in the Department Of Mystery, in the middle of the battle that had just happened a couple of months ago. "No!" Harry yelled again, not slowing down, "I don't want to-can't-" He shook his head as his eyes filled with tears but kept running, trying to ignore the battle raging around him.

"Harry!" he heard Ginny call his name and saw the red-head on the ground, bleeding profusely, "Please Harry! Help me!"

"Harry!" Further on he saw Neville; the shy Gryffindor was wrapped up in something resembling Devil's Snare, only it had long thorns that were buried in his friend, "You never should have let me come!" Neville berated him, "You knew I wasn't good enough!"

"Harry! Why won't you help us?" Hermione's voice was next, and Harry closed his eyes quickly, not wanting to see what terrible fate had befallen one of his best friends.

"Not real," he chanted, "It's not real; it didn't happen like this, my friends all came back safely, they're not dead. It's not real!"

"Oh, but it is real," When he heard that familiar voice Harry came to an abrupt halt and opened his eyes; standing in front of him was his godfather, Sirius Black.

"Sirius?" Harry whispered, "Oh, Sirius! I've missed you so much!" He ran to give his godfather a hug, but his arms passed right through him," Wh-what? Sirius; what's going on?"

"I'm dead, Harry," Sirius glared at him, "I'm dead, and it's all your fault. Why did you have to go to the ministry? Why couldn't you trust Dumbledore to keep you safe? I guess Snivellus was right all along, you really are just a glory-seeker, and all you do is get the people who love you killed."

"No!" Harry protested, feeling tears run down his face, "Please Sirius; don't say such things!"

"Why not?" Harry spun around and saw Ginny, or rather her ghost, stalking up to him, "It's true Harry; you got me killed by letting me go on that useless rescue mission. I was too young to go with you, but you couldn't even stand up to me; I had absolutely no business going there, and now I'm dead! Why? Because I loved you, although now I see you were unworthy of that love!"

"She's right," Hermione appeared next to Ginny, along with Ron, "You got us all killed Harry; why didn't you listen to me? I told you to wait, that it was a trap! I died because of you Harry, because I believed you would keep me safe."

"You just couldn't listen to anyone, could you?" Ron added, "I should have dropped you in fourth year when you entered the tournament; I always knew you just wanted attention, and you were willing to risk our lives to get it. Tell me, Potter, are you happy now?"

"No, please," Harry sank to his knees, "You're not dead Ron, you just had a run-in with the tank of brains! I was trying to save Sirius, but I told you not to come! Why are you all pretending to be dead?"

"We're not pretending," Neville appeared alongside of Luna, "You took us into danger, and then you wouldn't even help us when we needed it! I can't believe I thought you were my friend; I was obviously just another pawn to be used by you in your quest for glory." Luna didn't say anything, but only shook her head sadly at Harry, who was openly sobbing by now.

"I can't believe I gave my life for you," Harry jerked his head up to see his mother standing next to Sirius; James was standing behind her, "I should have let him take you that night, at least then Sirius would still be alive!"

"If I had known you would turn out like this, I never would have fought Voldemort for you," James spat, "You are worthless as a son; you got all of your friends killed, as well as my best friend! Then, to top it all off, you're all over that dirty Slytherin, letting him corrupt you; I am ashamed to call you my son!"

"No, Dad!" Harry cried, reaching out to his parents, "Please! I never meant to get anyone killed! And Draco-he's not like that! I won't talk to him anymore if that's what you want, but please, don't turn away from me like this!"

"We should have known there was something wrong with you back in second year," Hermione chimed in, "No decent wizard speaks parseltongue! That really should have been our first clue that you were no good!"

"Well, at least we know now," Ron said, "Why don't you go find your slimy Slytherin, you stupid ponce? Malfoy can have you, because we sure don't want you!"

"Don't you dare pawn him off on me," Harry looked up again to see Draco sneering down at him, "Why would I want a pathetic little insect like that?"

"Ha!" Ron laughed, "Not even your Death Eater boyfriend wants you anymore, now that he's seen how pathetic you are!"

"I never thought I'd agree with a Weasel, but he's absolutely correct," Draco drawled, "I don't want you; I never really wanted you, but you were just so easy to fool!" Draco smirked at Harry, who was unable to speak by this point, "I managed to get you where I want you, and now I'm going to turn you over to Voldemort and get the glory for my family." Harry's tears slowed as he listened to Draco speak, and he looked up to meet that cold, grey gaze.

"What did you say?" he asked.

"That's right," Draco crowed, "I'm going to give you to the Dark Lord and earn my place within the inner circle; my father and I will be Voldemort's most revered followers."

"You called him Voldemort," Harry stood up and wiped his tears, "You never say his name. You-you aren't real! None of you are real; you're just illusions and…" his eyes widened, and he began to smile, "you have no power over me!" As he spoke the phrase he felt the tingle of strong magic, and then he found himself back on the second landing, only this time there was only a single door in front of him. "That was exhausting," Harry muttered, closing his eyes for a moment, "but I'd better get going, no telling how much time I have left." Right on cue the clock began to chime, and he counted the strokes to eleven; "Okay, two hours left; I can do this!"

"Mr. Potter, a moment, if you would," Harry started as Lucius Malfoy appeared in front of him, "I have frozen the time temporarily, so this won't count against you, but I really must speak with you." Before Harry could respond Draco appeared.

"Father, what are you doing?" he demanded, glaring at Lucius, "You have no right to interfere; you swore on-"

"I know," Lucius interrupted, "and I am not interfering; I have frozen the clock so this won't take away from Mr. Potter's time, but something…unusual has occurred, and I require his presence. You are, of course, welcome to come along." Draco eyed his father suspiciously, but finally nodded his consent, and Lucius turned his cold gaze on Harry, "Will you accompany me, Mr. Potter? This concerns your friends."

"Okay," Harry agreed, and he fell into step with Draco, following Lucius down the hallway. After a few minutes, the trio reached a staircase going down, and before too long Harry found himself in what appeared to be a dungeon.

"Ah, here we are," Lucius stopped in front of a wooded door and unlocked it, ushering Harry and Draco to enter before him. Once through the door, Harry saw that they were in a sitting room with a couch, a few arm chairs, and a coffee table. All of the furniture was done in shades of grey, which made the room rather depressing, but the furniture was obviously well-made. Beyond the sitting room were two doors, and Lucius knocked on them. "Come out now Children; I've brought Harry to you." The doors flew open and Harry was astonished to see Ron, Fred, George and Neville come out of one room, while Hermione, Ginny and Luna came out of the other.

"What are you all doing here?" Harry demanded, "Did Malfoy trick you somehow?"

"Of course not, silly," Luna replied before anyone else could speak up, "Draco kindly offered to let me stay here with Neville until you finished the labyrinth so that we could watch you together. That was so sad earlier; you know that we love you and you shouldn't listen to the warbling huffdings, right?"

"Thanks Luna," Harry shook his head, "but I already know why you're here; I meant Hermione and the Weasley's; aren't you supposed to be on a cruise?" He gave them a questioning look.

"You can't expect us to enjoy a cruise when Dumbledore tells us you've been kidnapped by Malfoy and taken hostage in the goblin realm," Ron said indignantly, "We waited for more than thirteen hours, but you never showed up-"

"It hasn't been thirteen hours yet," Harry interrupted, "I still have two hours left, right Draco?"

"Approximately," Draco nodded, ignoring the astonished looks Harry's friends gave them, "Of course, time here operates independently of the Wizarding World; sometimes it runs faster, and other times it runs slower, so a lot more time may have passed outside of this realm."

"Oh," Harry said, then turned to his friends, "But, how did you guys get here? Did you wish away a sibling?"

"Of course not," Hermione sniffed, "The twins discovered a way to create a portal into this realm, so we waited until dawn-because all barriers are at their weakest at dawn and dusk- then we opened the portal and stepped through."

"Unfortunately, my brothers didn't have coordinates to know exactly where the portal would open," Ginny cast a scathing look at the twins, who grinned back unabashedly, "and we wound up in Mr. Malfoy's study."

"He didn't take too kindly to the trespassing," Fred added,

"So he sent us down here to the dungeons," George said,

"And told us that since we were trying to rescue you," Fred spoke up again,

"He would bring you down here to discuss our options," George concluded, and everyone turned to look at Lucius.

"That is correct," Lucius nodded, "Now, normally when someone enters our realm without permission they must try to solve the labyrinth in order to gain their freedom, and if they fail they become servants to my subjects."

"You just had to try and rescue me, didn't you?" Harry shook his head, "You guys are always on me about having to play hero, so you really should have known better; especially you, Hermione; I know you did research before coming here, so you must have known that there wasn't any way for you to get me out of this."

"We couldn't just leave you here," Hermione protested, "You always risk yourself to save us; remember the troll back in first year? You didn't even like me at that point, but you still came to my rescue; how could I do any less?"

"Why did you call him Draco?" Ron, in typical fashion, ignored everything else and focused on what he felt was important, "You're sitting next to Malfoy on the couch, almost like you're friends. You're not friends with him, are you?"

"Calm down Ron," Harry frowned, "Look, I can't explain it, but…Draco hasn't actually been that bad since I've been here." He noticed Draco smirking and turned a glare on the blonde, "I'm not saying he's nice or anything-he's still a snarky, sneaky Slytherin git-" said Slytherin slapped Harry upside his head and the Gryffindor grinned, "but he hasn't tried to kill me, and he-"

"I can't believe what I'm hearing!" Ron interrupted, his face red with anger, "This is Malfoy; MALFOY! Have you forgotten everything he's done to us over the years? And now you're _joking_ with him? Next you'll be getting matching Dark Marks!"

"All Dark Marks match, Weasley," Draco drawled, "As for torturing you over the years, you weren't exactly innocent if I remember correctly, and I have no intention of getting the Dark Mark."

"Of course not," Lucius spoke up, "Joining the Dark Lord was the biggest mistake of my life, and I won't have my son making the same mistake."

"Grow up Ron," Ginny said, and Lucius frowned as he realized that the kids weren't paying any attention to him, "If Harry is getting along with Malfoy he obviously has a reason for doing so; maybe Malfoy has changed, but whatever is going on it doesn't give you the right to turn on your best friend!"

"I'm not!" Ron protested, "I just don't see why he would be friends with that treacherous snake!"

"You always get mad about anything you don't understand," Hermione reprimanded him, "and you need to stop; if you're really Harry's friend you'll stop making accusations and give him a chance to explain."

"No," Harry said, "I shouldn't have to explain my choice of friends to Ron or anyone else; just because I'm getting along with Draco that doesn't mean you guys have to be friends with him."

"Friends with Gryffindor's?" Draco gave an exaggerated shudder, "Merlin forbid! I'm not talking about you of course," he patted Harry's shoulder comfortingly, "after all, we both know you should have been placed in Slytherin; right Lion? Hey!" He glared up at Harry from the floor where he ended up after the brunette shoved him; when he heard the girls giggling Draco turned his glare on them, which resulted in them laughing even harder.

"I told you not to call me that," Harry said, before offering him a hand up. Draco scowled but accepted the hand and sat down beside Harry once again, "Look guys, I'm not telling you to be friends with Draco, but if you want to remain friends with me I need you to at least try to be civil. If I don't solve the labyrinth before the time is up-don't worry 'Mione, Mr. Malfoy assured me that this little meeting won't take away from my time-then I will have to stay here with Draco. Of course, I have no intention of losing, but even if I win I have the option of staying here as a free subject, and I am seriously considering accepting that offer; if I live here I won't have to worry about the Dursley's ever again."

"So you're saying we should probably get used to the idea of seeing you hanging out with Draco," Ginny said, and Harry nodded.

"Look guys," Neville spoke up for the first time, "From what I've seen-and what Luna has told me-Malfoy really isn't that bad, so you should really stop giving Harry a hard time."

"Excuse me," Lucius spoke up before anyone could reply, "This is all very fascinating, but I _do _have a kingdom to run, so perhaps we can get down to business?" The teens quieted down and gave the elder Malfoy their full attention. "Excellent. Now, as I stated before, normally the six of you would have to solve the labyrinth to be freed from the realm-Luna is excluded in this since she is part Fae- however, I am willing to make a deal." He faced Harry and Draco, "I admit that I am not very happy with the terms of the contract you boys agreed on, so here is my offer; I will let everyone except for Luna go, if you strike this part from the agreement." He held out a copy of the contract, and Harry saw that he had crossed out the last half of the second sentence; "and the choice to return home or remain in the Fae Realm as a free subject or advisor."

"So you're saying that you don't want me to remain here if I solve the labyrinth," Harry clarified.

"Exactly," Lucius nodded, "I feel it would be detrimental to my realm if you were to have free-reign here. Also, if you solve the labyrinth then your memory would be erased once you step through the door back to your realm. As for you, my son," he turned his gaze on Draco, "if Potter solves the labyrinth then you will immediately head for the ballroom, where you will choose a fiancé before dawn. Once you have chosen your fiancé, then you shall forget about Potter's time in the realm as well."

"That's absurd!" Draco scoffed, "Why should I agree to this?"

"Because if you don't, the Potter's friends will each have to go through _my _version of the labyrinth," Lucius stated, "and they will have to work alone. In addition, I would make it a competition so that the last person to solve the labyrinth would have to stay here forever."

"You…I can't even think of a word bad enough for you," Harry growled, and Lucius smirked at him, "You're a manipulative old bastard, even worse than Dumbledore! In fact, you're worse scum than my Muggle relatives! I don't seem to have a choice however, because you know I can't let one of my friends be stuck here, so I agree to your terms. Do you have a quill?" Lucius widened his smirk and handed Harry a blood quill, and the angry Gryffindor re-signed the contract before passing it to Draco. The blonde looked absolutely furious, but accepted the contract and the quill none-the-less.

"I would refuse to sign, but I know that Harry would never forgive me, and he would make the rest of my life miserable," Draco informed his father, "but I want you to know that I agree with his assessment of you. In fact, I may not remember any of this if Harry solves the labyrinth, but I swear on my magic that I will find a way to get even with you for this under-handed trick. You may believe that this circumvents the vow you made earlier, however this still qualifies as interfering in the labyrinth, and you cannot wipe Mother's memory; if I lose Harry because of you, Mother will make sure you pay for being an oath breaker." With that said Draco signed the contract and handed back to Lucius, who had paled considerably during his son's speech. "Now, if you would kindly leave, I will see that the Weasley's, Longbottom, and Granger make it back safely."

"This is for your own good, son," Lucius said, but still left the teens alone. The teens sat in silence for a moment, then Draco spoke up.

"Well, I guess it's time to send you Gryffindor's home," Draco said, "Luna, you still have to serve out your sentence unless Harry can find you before the time runs out, so I'm going to move you to another part of the castle; you should make your good-bye's now."

"Good-bye everyone!" Luna smiled, giving hugs all around and kissing Neville's cheek, "Don't worry; there's still a chance this will all work out." She walked over to Harry and plopped down on his lap so that she could look him in the eye. "Don't give up hope Harry; remember what I told you about the blibbering humdingers-you really should ask their advice." She touched the necklace Draco had given Harry earlier and whispered a few words. "Keep this close to your heart, and you'll never truly forget." She kissed Harry on the cheek as well, ignoring Draco's low growl. "As for you cousin, I will see you later. Whatever happens, don't give in; just because Lucius is a member of the Rotfang Conspiracy doesn't mean you have to follow in his footsteps." She gave him a kiss on the cheek too, and then stood up, "Well, I guess I should go now; if you would fix the door for me Draco?" Draco nodded and waved his hand, causing the door to glow blue for a moment, and Luna skipped over to it then flashed the room a bright smile before opening the door and stepping through it, vanishing at once.

"You're next, Harry," Draco said, "tell your friends farewell so that I can send you back to where you started." Harry nodded and then spent a few minutes telling his friends good-bye and reassuring them that he would be fine.

"Well," he began, standing in front of Draco, "I still have two hours left?" The blonde nodded. "Good, then I suppose I should get started. I'm sure I'll be seeing you around shortly?"

"Of course," Draco smirked, and Harry notice that the expression looked a lot nicer on Draco's face than it did on the elder Malfoy, "and I'd better warn you, since the contract has been changed I will be trying even harder to insure you don't solve the labyrinth." He stepped closer and leaned in so that he could speak directly into Harry's ear, lowering his voice so that only the brunette could hear him, "I told you before that I want you, and I don't intend to let you slip away without a fight; I will be doing everything in my power to keep you here with me, Lion." Harry shivered as Draco pressed a kiss just below his ear and then stepped back, waving his hand at the door once again. "I've set the door so that you will reappear back on the landing. I hope you're prepared for a struggle, my Little Lion." Harry shook his head and walked over to the door; after he opened it he gave his friends a little wave and then addressed Draco;

"Next time you call me Lion, I will hurt you Malfoy," he glared at Draco, but the blonde merely smirked in reply, so Harry rolled his eyes and then took a step forward, disappearing through the doorway.

"I know you probably all have questions," Draco addressed the remaining teens, "however I have no intentions of answering them at this time. If Harry winds up staying here then we will have to try and get along, but until then I have other things I must focus on."

"Like trying to make sure Harry fails to solve the labyrinth," Ron scowled, and Draco smiled at him.

"Exactly," the Slytherin said, "I've reset the door again, so it will take you all back to wherever it is you were before you came here. Also," he hesitated for a moment before continuing, "I placed a charm on the doorway so that your memories of Harry being here will be preserved; I hope that you will remind him of what transpired if he does happen to solve the labyrinth and lose his memories. If one of us remembers, then maybe we can ruin my father's plan. So, off with you now!" He waved them through the door, receiving sympathetic smiles from the girls, and angry scowl from Ron, and friendly winks from the twins. Neville was the only one to speak to him before leaving.

"I just wanted to say that I've realized you're not all bad," Neville said quietly, "and I think that you would be good for Harry, so…good luck, Malfoy." He started to step through the door, but stopped when Draco put a hand in front of him.

"Draco," the blonde said, "If we're considering a truce, you should call me Draco." Neville smiled and accepted the hand.

"Then call me Neville," the Gryffindor replied, "and, no matter what happens in the labyrinth, you can count on my help with Harry." Draco nodded and Neville gave him a final grin before stepping through the doorway, leaving Draco alone in the dungeons.

"That didn't go too badly," Draco murmured, "Well, except for my father." He scowled in remembrance, "I can't believe he did that to me, but I suppose I should have expected it from a Death Eater. I really wish he hadn't been able to buy off the ministry and get out of Azkaban; if anyone deserves to be there, it's him." Draco glared at the wall for a moment longer before walking over to the door; when he turned the knob however, it refused to open. "What?"

"I will not stand for your disrespect," a holographic image of Lucius appeared before him, "in order to teach you a lesson, I have locked you in the dungeon, and you shall remain there for one hour. This means that you will not be able to set any further traps for Potter, so you had better hope that the ones you already set are enough to keep him busy for a while. Personally, I hope that he solves the labyrinth; I don't approve of your feelings for the half-blood, and I will do everything in my power to help the Dark Lord capture him once Potter returns to the other realm. Now, as I said you have one hour to think about your disrespect of me; maybe in the future you will keep your thoughts to yourself." The hologram of Lucius faded out, and Draco cursed his father as he stormed around the dungeon room. After ten minutes of raging at his Lucius, Draco sat down and opened a viewing portal so that he could track Harry's progress, all the while plotting ways to get revenge on his deceitful father.

********************************************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note******************************************************************

**Evil Lucius! So, how do you think he should be made to suffer? A big thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter for me; everyone voted to have Harry suffer through memories, so I tried to put the most traumatizing events in here, and tweaked them a little bit as well. This chapter is a bit on the short side, but I plan to have the next chapter up soon. **


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

_Are we done for now_

_Or is this for good_

_Will there be something in time?_

_With us there should _

_Only boy for me is you_

_There can be no other one_

_If I didn't have faith_

_I would come undone_

Harry stepped through the doorway and found himself back on the second floor landing where Lucius has accosted him earlier; as the door closed behind him, he heard the clock chime eleven once again, so he knew that he still had two hours left to solve the labyrinth. Looking around, he saw that the single door he noticed earlier was still there, and it was the only door in sight. The door was bright red with a golden handle and the image of a golden snitch etched into the frame. With no other options available, Harry opened the door and stepped into a stone maze.

"Really?" Harry cried, "Another maze? I thought I was finished with the labyrinth part of this!" He glared at the stone wall in front of him before choosing a path at random. As he walked, Harry pulled one of the black markers out of his pocket and drew small arrows every fifteen feet or so, insuring that he wouldn't be walking around in circles. The stone maze was eerily silent, the only sound being the echo of Harry's footsteps as he traversed the path, so Harry used the time to think.

Lucius Malfoy, Harry decided, was the dirtiest, sneakiest Death Eater in Voldemort's employ; he was beyond angry at the elder Malfoy for using his friends to force Harry to capitulate to Lucius' wishes, and promised himself that he would find a way to get revenge. Harry sighed; he had finally decided that he would stay in the realm after solving the labyrinth, and then Lucius had come along and shot that plan all to hell. Yes, Harry nodded, he really did hate Draco's father; Lucius was near the top of his list, along with Voldemort, Bellatrix Lestrange, Dumbledore, and the Dursley's. Now, if Harry solved the labyrinth he would not only be forbidden from coming back to the goblin realm, but he would lose all his memories of what transpired; he really didn't want to go back to fighting with Draco all the time, not after he finally got to see another side to the Slytherin. Of course, Harry knew that he could always give up on the labyrinth, but that didn't sit well with his Gryffindor mentality; Harry just couldn't give up without a fight, no matter the circumstances. Plus, just because he was starting to like Draco that didn't necessarily mean he could trust the blonde; if he failed to solve the labyrinth Draco would have enormous power over him and the blonde was definitely Slytherin enough to take advantage of it-the only question was what Draco would use that power for.

Harry continued walking, contemplating his options, and eventually noticed something sparkling on the ground; he vaguely recognized that there were gemstones embedded in the path. The gems glowed softly, illuminating Harry's way, and he followed them without making a conscious decision. Harry was so lost in thought that he was basically in a trance, blindly following the path embedded with gemstones and not even noticing the many side paths that we walked by. As he walked, Harry's mind eventually wandered from thoughts of Draco and began to focus on the glowing gems beneath his feet until all he could think of was finding more precious stones, all thoughts of the labyrinth forgotten…

Draco smirked as he watched Harry make his way through the stone maze; the gemstones lining the path were imbued with a subtle spell that was activated when the person walking the path was distracted.

'Hmm, Harry must be thinking very hard about something,' Draco mused, 'It didn't take long at all for him to succumb to the spell; the way things are going he'll be stuck on that path the entire time I'm confined here. I wonder what he's thinking about…' Draco laughed out loud when Harry unknowingly began walking in a circle; now that he was caught in the trap it would take some sort of outside influence to bring him out of the trance. The blonde boy snapped his fingers, and a goblin appeared. He ordered it to bring him some wine and, as an afterthought, to find Narcissa and tell her about Lucius' interference; Harry would most likely be stuck on the path for the entire hour, but that didn't mean Draco was prepared to just sit around in this depressing dungeon if he could get out of it. As he waited for the goblin to return he made a mental note to have the dungeons re-decorated; as they were right now they were dull enough to make even the sanest person contemplate suicide. Draco found some parchment and a quill and began brainstorming color schemes; they had fifteen dungeon suites that were generally used to confine subjects who made a public nuisance of themselves or to hide friends in need of sanctuary, and Draco wanted to give each room its own design.

He had been locked in the dungeons for about 45 minutes when the door opened and Narcissa stepped in.

"I'm sorry it took so long Dragon," Narcissa said, "I was having tea at the manor and I just received your message; what exactly happened?"

"Father forced Harry to give up his right to stay here if he solved the labyrinth, and he is also going to force me to agree to a betrothal before the sun rises in the realm," Draco didn't waste any time but got right to the point, "After I sent Harry back to finish the labyrinth, Luna to her rooms, and the Gryffindor's back to the other realm I made the mistake of speaking out loud about my feelings regarding Father's actions, and he locked me in here. By the way, this color scheme is horrible; here are some ideas I had for redecorating."

"Of course Dear," Narcissa smiled as she took the list, then she frowned thoughtfully, "As for your father, while I disagree with what he did, he hasn't really interfered with the labyrinth challenge, so he can't be punished for that…"

"But he also swore not to interfere with Harry's fate," Draco pointed out to his mother, "and by taking away his choice, he is interfering in his fate after completion of the labyrinth. Also, he is planning to kill Harry or turn him over to the Dark Lord as soon as Harry is back in the other realm."

"This is not good," Narcissa said, "I always hoped that your father would come back around; that he would see the Dark Lord for the monster that he is, but it looks like that will never happen." Narcissa sighed before shaking her head to clear it. "Well, now we have to deal with the situation; I have an idea on how to deal with Lucius, but it will have to wait until the thirteen hours are over." She looked over at the viewing screen and smiled at the sight of Harry walking in circles, "It was well thought out to place that obstacle in front of him."

"Not really," Draco laughed, "Harry always seems to be thinking of multiple things at once; I knew he would most likely be distracted after out talk with Father, so I made a quick change to the obstacle-it worked even better than I had anticipated."

"Well, it looks like you may win regardless of your Father's involvement," Narcissa said, "Why don't you go focus on Harry and I will work out the punishment for your father; I will see you in a couple of hours Dragon."

"Yes, Mother; thank you," he gave his mother a kiss on the cheek before leaving the dungeon and heading up to his bedroom; they were almost down to the last hour, which meant it was time for Draco to prepare for the final confrontation. The blonde had no doubt that this battle of wills between Harry and himself would continue until the last possible moment; he could sense that Harry was beginning to open up to him, but he knew the brunette's Gryffindor pride wouldn't allow him to just give in. Draco smirked to himself; Harry may be determined to win the labyrinth, but that didn't mean the Slytherin was going to make it easy for him to walk away. No, he was going to seduce the reluctant Gryffindor and ensure that Harry stayed with him.

The clock began to chime twelve and Draco headed to his bathroom, shedding his clothes on the way; if he was going to seduce Harry he needed to start getting ready. He grabbed a clean washcloth then stepped into the frosted shower stall and turned the water on; it heated to the right temperature instantaneously, and Draco just stood there for a moment, tilting his head back and closing his eyes to enjoy the warm water streaming down. Reaching out blindly he felt around until he grabbed his vanilla-scented body wash and poured some out, working it into a lather in his hands. Leaning against the shower wall he wrapped one hand around his cock and began slowly stroking it, imaging that the hand touching him belonged to a certain brunette. He recalled the way Harry looked when he had kissed him back in the oubliette, dark hair even wilder than usual, a blush staining his cheeks, and those impossibly bright emerald eyes glassed over…Draco's hand moved faster over his erection as he used his other hand to massage his balls, and he pictured Harry kneeling in front of him, taking his cock in his mouth and-

"Oh Merlin; Harry!" Draco cried as he came, slamming his head back into the tile wall. He stood under the warm water for a few moments to get his harsh breathing under control; as he grabbed his washcloth and finished his shower, Draco's thoughts remained on Harry and finding a way to keep the Gryffindor with him…

_Such promise in your eyes_

_Seems that only I can see_

_It always makes me wonder_

_If you save it all for me_

_Maybe you do_

_Maybe you don't_

_Maybe you should_

_Probably you won't..._

Almost an hour had passed and Harry was still walking the stone path, his thoughts now completely focused on the brightly covered stones before him. Somewhere in the back of his mind Harry knew there was something he was supposed to be doing, but every time he tried to focus on that thought it drifted away as his attention was once more caught by a sparkling gem. Distantly Harry heard the chime of a clock, and it brought a flash of memory, something about thirteen hours… He focused on the sound of the invisible clock counting the hour and more flashes came back to him…a blonde boy bathed in moonlight…a fantastical landscape…angry vines being transformed into purple sparkly scarfs by a blonde girl…kissing a blonde boy in a dark cavern…being given a necklace by the same blonde boy…the necklace!

Harry fumbled with his clothing until he pulled an amulet out from under his shirt; he clasped the stone tightly in his hand as the clock finished striking twelve, and finally managed to break out of the trance. Blinking slowly Harry looked around and saw that he was walking along a circular path embedded with thousands of glowing gemstones.

"What the hell?" Harry fumed, "How did I end up walking in circles? The whole point of me drawing arrows was to prevent me from wasting time!" Searching his pocket, Harry found that both of the markers were missing, and he figured he must have dropped them at some point. "I can't believe I wasted an hour going in circles; stupid Malfoy!" He glowered at the path as he walked around it one more time, trying to see if there was anything to indicate which of the nearby paths he had been on before getting caught in the trap. After a few minutes he saw a black arrow drawn on the wall of a path near him and he made for that pathway; before he could step of the circular path, however, a stone wall suddenly appeared, blocking him in.

"Dammit! Really?" Harry cried, "Now how do I get out of here?" He walked closer to the wall to examine the area where the path had been located, but jumped back with a shout when it started glowing and began to spin around. Harry crossed his arms and tapped his foot, glaring at the wall as he waited for it to stop spinning. Instead of stopping, however, the ground beneath his feet tilted and Harry stumbled until he landed against the wall; the pressure from the spinning was enough to pin Harry in place and all he could do was close his eyes and wait for the ground to become steady again.

The ground beneath is feet and the wall at his back finally became still again after about ten minutes-although it felt more like an hour-, and Harry collapsed to his hands and knees on the ground, head bowed as he waited for the dizziness to pass.

"Stupid Malfoy," he muttered what had become his new favorite phrase, "He's a bloody git, that's what he is! And the insufferable prat thinks I would want to stay here with him; not bloody likely!" He climbed to his feet and began his examination of the wall; a careful examination showed nothing that even remotely resembled a hidden door, nor did he discover any secret doors by tapping on the stones. Harry was about to resort to cursing again, when he looked on the ground and saw a brightly shining emerald on the gem-encrusted path that had previously bewitched him. Looking around he noticed that it was the only emerald on the ground so he approached it cautiously, expecting another trap. A few feet away from the emerald he was able to see that there was a silver snake engraved in the center of the gem.

"Of course, it has to be a snake," Harry shook his head before speaking in parseltongue; "I command you to open." Once he finished speaking the emerald flashed one time before it began to melt; after a few seconds all that was left was a green puddle, and Harry eyed it dubiously, weighing his options. "If this kills me I _will_ haunt you Malfoy!" He threatened before taking a deep breath and jumping feet-first into the melted gemstone. He fell for what seemed like an eternity, seeing nothing but the green glow that surrounded him, and being lulled into a drowsy state despite his best efforts.

Eventually, Harry saw something grey below him, and he realized with a start that it was the ground. Then he realized that his descent was not slowing down, and that he would be flattened when he finally reached the bottom.

'Huh, so this was a trap,' he thought resignedly and closed his eyes as he waited for the impact. When nothing happened Harry opened his eyes cautiously and saw that he had come to a halt just a few feet above the ground; as soon as he recognized this fact whatever force had halted his fall let go, and he fell clumsily to the ground, banging his elbow in the process.

_Because there will be..._

_There will be other guys_

_Who will whisper in your ear_

_Say they'll take away your sadness _

_And your fears_

_They may be kind and true_

_They may be good for you_

_But they'll never care for you_

_More than I do_

"Ow!" he cried, 'Dammit! This is even worse than fighting Voldemort; at least Iexpect him to cause me bodily harm!"

"How kind of you to drop in Harry," the dreamy voice had Harry looking up and he saw that Luna was in the same room with him, "The warbling huffdings told me that you would never find me, but the blibbering humdingers said you would and they're always more trustworthy if you know how to bribe them, so I knew you would rescue me."

"Well of course I came to rescue you," he told his friend, "The door is right over there, so just grab my hand and we'll get out of here."

"That's not going to work," Luna sang, "Draco would never make it that easy." But she reached for his hand none-the-less; as their fingertips touched Harry was blinded by a bright white light, and when he could see again Luna was a tiny blonde dot on the far side of the chamber.

"I'm coming Luna!" He yelled as he took a step forward; suddenly the ground beneath his feet lurched and rolled, making him think of an earthquake. The ground's unnatural movement brought Harry to his knees for the third time in less than an hour-he distractedly wondered if the goblin prince was trying to hint at something and promptly blushed-and when it stilled again the chamber was completely different.

Instead of a large expanse of grey stone, the chamber Harry was standing in was filled with staircases, and they weren't all normal staircases either; some of the stairs were upside down, others were sideways, some were spiral staircases, and some were suspended in midair. Luna was on a landing connected to one of those midair staircases, still on the far side of the chamber. Determined to make this easier on himself, Harry started to walk across the chamber, figuring he would wait until he got closer to Luna before climbing a staircase, but the ground in front of him disappeared so that he had no choice but to ascend the nearest set of stairs. (He did check to see if the ground dropping away was an illusion first by closing his eyes and feeling around with his left foot, but the open air in front of him was very real.)

Harry reached the top of the first set of stairs and found himself upside-down, with his hair standing on end; he held onto his glasses to keep them from falling and briefly thought that it was a good thing he had accepted the new clothes earlier in the day-if he was still wearing Dudley's old cast-off's they would have fallen off him when he turned upside-down and he would be naked right now. Harry reached his hands up to touch the landing right above his head, and immediately found himself on that staircase right-side up. Shaking his head at the strangeness of it all, Harry continued on his way.

As he made his way through the chamber of stairs he thought he saw a flash of blonde hair out of the corner of his eyes, but it was gone when he turned to look.

"Luna?" he called, but there was no answer; at this point he was surrounded by staircases and he had long ago lost sight of his flighty friend, although he did see her skipping from staircase to staircase n occasion-each time he admonished her to stay still, but she merely laughed and continued on.

"Time's running out, Harry," a voice purred in his ear, making shivers run down his spine, but when he spun around there was no one there. He shook his head and continued climbing the staircase he was currently on, only to feel the brush of warm air against the back of his neck as he heard a low laugh that had to have come from Draco. "Fifteen minutes, Lion; do you give up yet? You know you want to be mine." Harry looked over his shoulder glaring, but once again there was no one near him.

"Stop messing with me, Draco," he said, "It won't work; I'm not giving up! Thinks he's irresistible," he muttered, "Like I can't resist him; ha!" He tripped over his feet as he came to the next landing, catching himself on one knee.

"On your knees again Harry?" Draco's voice whispered again, and this time Harry swore he felt lips against his earlobe, causing things to tighten low on his body, "I-"

"Shut it Malfoy!" Harry said, fighting a blush, "Stupid dirty-minded Slytherin." He glared at the empty air in front of him, and realized that he was finally near Luna; she was just in front of him, on a landing about fifteen feet out and twenty feet down. Looking around, Harry saw that there were no stairs leading to that landing, and the only stairs on his landing were the ones he used to climb up it. Recalling Malfoy's warning about time running out, Harry gave into his Gryffindor instincts and did the only thing he could think of; he closed his eyes and jumped.

Really, when he thought about it later he realized that closing his eyes probably wasn't a smart idea, but then again, neither was jumping; his only excuse was that it had worked in the movie, and-just like in the movie-everything seemed to slow down as the stairs began to vanish. He missed the landing Luna was standing on but managed to grab hold of her outstretched hand, and the two fell at a slow pace, giving them a chance to look at the scene around them. At first there wasn't much to see, just stone staircases and empty landings; after a while Harry saw a landing with a bright yellow door that had a moon and stars painted on it in purple, and Luna squeezed his hand.

"This is my stop," she smile, "See you on the other side Harry!" She let go of his hand and Harry saw her land gently in front of the door; seconds later he fell past it, and then he was falling through a silvery mist.

"You made it, Harry," Malfoy's voice sounded next to his ear, you solved the labyrinth, and now we're at the end of the game; are you ready?" Harry felt a pair of arms around his waist and lips at his throat, leaving a burning trail of kisses from his ear to his collarbone. The soft kisses made Harry shiver and he unconsciously tilted his head back, closing his eyes and giving the Slytherin better access to his smooth skin.

_I'll always be there _

_There to the end_

_I can't do much_

_But be your one true friend_

_To the end_

_Through the end_

_Our lives to spend_

_With each other till the end_

_Of time..._

"You're running out of time, Harry," a sing-song voice jolted Harry back to awareness and he jerked out of the soft embrace; opening his eyes he saw Luna standing in front of him, and he could tell from the heat at his back that Draco was behind him. Harry was standing on a stone bridge still surrounded by the silver mist, and when he turned to face Draco he saw that there were two objects behind the blonde boy-a wooden door with a gold handle, and a grandfather clock showing five 'til.

"Spoil sport," Draco scowled at Luna, "A few more minutes and I would have had him; I thought you were supposed to be on my side!"

"Nope," Luna smiled, "I did what I felt was best for Harry…and what the blibbering humdingers told me to do. Now Harry; it's time for your speech denouncing Draco so you can have your freedom."

"Do I really have to give that speech?" Harry pleaded.

"Yes," Draco replied, and Luna nodded, adding; "It's part of the challenge Harry; the whifflehammers will get angry and attack if you don't."

"Fine," Harry sighed, and then straightened his shoulders, looking Draco directly in the eye. He began, "Through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered-more like sneaky tricks and annoying obstacles-I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the goblin city to…rescue my friend and defend my freedom? Yeah, rescue my friend and defend my freedom, for my will is as strong as yours and my kingdom-hmm, I don't have a kingdom…oh! My will is as strong as yours and my family as great! You have no power-"

"Wait!" Draco interrupted, "Don't say anything you'll regret Harry. I have the power you need; together we can defeat the Dark Lord and rescue your godfather. If you leave now, you will always regret this moment; you may win the challenge, but your chance to rescue Sirius will slip through your fingers. Together we can accomplish so much; stay with me Harry, and I can give you the world." Harry hesitated, more tempted by the offer then he would like to admit. Draco took the chance to step closer to the brunette and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Just think about it Harry; we could end the war, make Dumbledore stop meddling in everyone's lives, rescue your godfather, and that's only the beginning…"

"I can't," Harry said quietly, meeting those stormy grey eyes, "That would mean giving in, and you should know that I can't do that Draco."

"You still owe me a forfeit," the blonde reminded him, and Harry narrowed his eyes to glare at the blonde suspiciously, "A kiss, Harry. One final kiss, because by rescuing your friends you gave up your right to come back after you complete the challenge." Harry nodded, blinking away the sudden tears in his eyes-and when had he started crying? Draco placed two fingers under Harry's chin and tilted his face up so he could press their lips together. Harry tangled one of his hands in Draco's platinum locks and held tightly to his neck with the other one, eagerly opening his mouth to admit the blonde's questing tongue. Why, oh why did he have to be so stubborn? Would giving into Draco really be that bad? Wouldn't it be worse to walk away and leave this behind? Harry pushed his doubts away and focused on the kiss; it was the most intense kiss they'd shared so far, all tongues and lips and teeth. There were harsh nips soothed by soft tongues, thorough tasting and gentle teasing; a bittersweet mixture of love and tears. It was perfect and heartbreaking at the same time, because both boys knew that they would never share this again. When they finally drew apart there were tears on both of their faces, and even Luna was crying.

_Still see the promise in your eyes_

_And still wonder if it's for me_

_But I know it's still there_

_Even when you sleep_

"Damn Lucius," she said, startling both boys with her vehemence, "He didn't have to give Harry that ultimatum; he just did it because he wanted to make everyone miserable. Oh, Harry! You should have-"

"You know I didn't have a choice," Harry smiled sadly, "I couldn't let one of my friends be stuck here for life; I would have never forgiven myself. I just wish that I didn't have to forget all of this once I leave." The clock began to chime the thirteenth hour and Harry gave Draco watery smile. "Luna, when we get back to Hogwarts remind me of what happened here, okay? You never know; I've beaten the odds before, so maybe I won't forget all this and we'll get the chance to laugh at your father's failed plans." Luna nodded and Draco gave a soft laugh. Harry turned to the door leading home and opened it, but hesitated when it came to actually stepping through; he finally found someone that he could love, was he really going to give that up? He turned to look at Draco one last time and found the blonde right behind him, so Harry pulled him close and kissed him one last time before whispering, "Good-bye, Draco." The brunette then turned back to the doorway and, holding his breath, took a step forward as the clock chimed ten…eleven…he stood on the threshold…twelve…he crossed through the doorway…on the final chime

Harry heard the door close behind him and quickly spun around, only to find himself facing a blank wall. He closed his eyes and let the sense of loss wash over him. For nigh on six years he and Draco had been at odds, but over the last thirteen hours he had seen a different side of the Slytherin; a side he liked, maybe even loved, but Harry had-once again!-screwed things up. If only he hadn't given into his pride! He could be with Draco right now, but no; he had to be a stubborn Gryffindor and refuse to give in. Now, he had beaten the challenge of the labyrinth and he was back in his own world, but what did he really have to show for it? Nothing; just an empty hole in his heart that he knew could only be filled by Draco, and Draco himself would be forced to marry either Parkinson or Zambini. If Lucius was only erasing Harry's memories there was a chance that Draco could have won him over again once school started, but the elder Malfoy had insisted he would wipe both of their memories once Harry left the labyrinth, so now neither one of them would be able to remember-Wait a minute! Harry's eyes snapped open.

_So I say, good night sweet boy..._

***************************************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note***********************************************************************

**Sorry it took so long! I haven't had much access to the computer lately, and I also had a little bit of a problem with the middle of this chapter; I actually wrote the first two pages and then the last two pages before filling in the middle lol. I'm already working on the next chapter, and hope to have it up in a little later this week. So...does this count as a cliff hanger? I've been trying to use the songs from the movie labyrinth in my story, but for this chapter I went with the song "Good Night Sweet Girl" by Ghost of the Robot; I changed a couple of the words in the song to make it fit Harry and Draco, but there were no major changes to the song. I hope you guys liked this chapter; please review and I will update ASAP! **


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

_Last time…_

_Harry heard the door close behind him and quickly spun around, only to find himself facing a blank wall. He closed his eyes and let the sense of loss wash over him. For nigh on six years he and Draco had been at odds, but over the last thirteen hours he had seen a different side of the Slytherin; a side he liked, maybe even loved, but Harry had-once again!-screwed things up…the elder Malfoy had insisted he would wipe both of their memories once Harry left the labyrinth, so now neither one of them would be able to remember-Wait a minute! Harry's eyes snapped open…_

"I remember!" He said, shocked, "How do I remember? I should have lost all my memories of the labyrinth once I stepped back into my room…" Harry trailed off as he looked around the room he was in; it had a dark wooden floor, the furnishings were made of cherry wood, and the throw rugs, curtains, sheets and other fabrics were all done in silver, dark blue and emerald green. The astounded Gryffindor gaped for a minute-this certainly wasn't his room at the Dursley's! "I must still be in the goblin realm," he whispered, "but…how?"

"You didn't say the ritual words," Harry spun around and saw Narcissa Malfoy standing in the doorway, "May I come in?"

"Um, sure," Harry said, "I mean, it's not my room and I know this is your castle, so I can't tell you not to come in."

"This is your room, at least for now," Narcissa smiled, and Harry was amazed at how warm that smile was. She gestured him to a set of armchairs in what was obviously a reading area; Narcissa took one and motioned for Harry to take the other. "This is actually Draco's room, but you will stay here unless he assigns you another; per the terms of your contract Draco is the one responsible for any decisions about you. Now, you seem a bit confused dear; perhaps I can answer some of your questions?"

"I'd like that," Harry replied, "I'm really confused about why I'm still here; I know I stepped through the doorway before the clock chimed thirteen!"

"It's very simple, really," Narcissa replied, "In order to be free to leave the Fae Realm there are a total of three things you must do; first, you must solve the labyrinth, next you must say the ritual words and, finally, you must exit through the door before the clock chimes thirteen. You solved the labyrinth-and performed a side task of saving your friends, which was very admirable!-but you did not finish saying the ritual words, and you stepped through the door on the thirteenth chime; if you had said the ritual words you would have been free to leave, but the combination of not saying the words and stepping through on the last chime means that you technically failed to solve the challenge of the labyrinth."

"No!" Harry shook his head, "I may have stepped through at the last possible second, but I said the words!" Narcissa smiled softly as she shook her head at him.

"You did not finish," she said, "The most important words come at the end: 'You have no power over me.' You began saying the words, but were interrupted and never finished the phrase, therefore the closing ritual was incomplete."

"That sneaky, slimy, Slytherin!" Harry cried, "I'll bet he did that on purpose! He tricked me! Oh, when I get my hands on him…" Narcissa began to giggle and Harry trailed off as he felt his face flush; it wasn't exactly polite to insult Draco to his mother's face. "I'm sorry Mrs. Malfoy; I didn't mean any offense to you-"

"There's none taken," Narcissa replied, her eyes still bright with laughter, "and please, call me Narcissa. I can understand you being upset at the thought that Draco tricked you, but I really don't believe that's the case; if he had purposely tricked you he would be up here by now, but I know for a fact he is in the grand ballroom with Lucius. My husband is no doubt trying to get Draco to agree to a betrothal right away, so we had better hurry down there and stop him." She eyed Harry critically, "You really can't go down there looking like that though; those clothes are rather dirty and torn from your adventures. Normally I would insist on a shower, but since time is of the essence…" Narcissa pulled out her wand and whispered an incantation and Harry suddenly found himself feeling as clean as if he had just scrubbed himself in the shower and also wearing new clothes. At Narcissa's insistence Harry moved in front of a full-length mirror and studied his reflection. His new outfit was a pair of black calf-length boots, skin-tight black pants, a long-sleeved, silk button up shirt in emerald green that clung to him like a second skin, and a black cloak with silver lining. In his shirt pocket was a single silver rose.

"I feel indecent," Harry said blushing, "These clothes don't leave anything to the imagination, Mrs.-I mean, Narcissa."

"They are attention-grabbing though," Narcissa pointed out, "and you want him to notice you as soon as you walk in. Of course, we don't want Lucius to notice you…" she tapped her chin thoughtfully with one long, elegant finger, "Oh, I know!" She snapped her fingers and Harry felt his glasses change. "Perfect!" Now, instead of his normal black glasses, the upper part of Harry's face was obscured by a silver mask; only Harry's mouth and part of his nose remained uncovered, but his green eyes were still bright behind the mask. "Okay, Harry-may I call you Harry?" he nodded and she continued, "Wonderful! Now, I'll escort you to the ball room and distract Lucius while you locate Draco; you must find him before Lucius finds you or he may still find some way to stop us. Are you ready?" Harry nodded again and offered Narcissa his arm, allowing her to lead him out of the room.

In the ballroom…

Draco stood dejectedly by a long window in the ballroom, scowling at any one who dared to come near him; the blonde was royally pissed at his father-and also at Luna because he felt that if the Ravenclaw hadn't interrupted him Harry wouldn't have left. Now, he had two hours before he would have to enter into a betrothal and give up not only his memories of the last few hours spent with the emerald-eyed boy, but all hope of being with him in the future.

Draco had already decided that he would get engaged to Pansy Parkinson, figuring that if he couldn't have the boy he loved he would marry someone who could give him an heir, and also maybe save her from serving the Dark Lord; that was one thing Draco was determined not to give way on-there was no way in hell he would become a Death Eater, and he would save as many of his friends as he could. Since Draco had already decided on his soon-to-be fiancé he decided to spend his last two hours as a free man reminiscing about Harry and plotting his father's demise.

He stared at his reflection in the window and recalled the first time he met Harry in Madam Malkin's robe shop; Harry had been a pale, scrawny little boy, excited and naïve about the wizarding world, and Draco…he had been a spoiled, pompous git if he was honest with himself. Of course, he was only eleven, and he didn't know any better. He had watched Harry over the years, at first with anger and jealousy and then lust and admiration, as he changed from a scrawny little misfit into a confident, sexy teen. Draco's favorite memories, however, had all occurred within the past thirteen hours; seeing the awe on Harry's face when they entered Draco's realm, the flush on his face when Draco flirted with him, the glazed look in those emerald eyes after sharing a passionate kiss, the sweet kiss Harry gave him after accepting the amulet, and that bitter-sweet kiss they shared just before Harry left him… No matter what Lucius said, Draco felt that he would never truly forget those moments. As he recalled the moments spent with Harry, Draco thought he saw a boy with a familiar mop of messy dark hair reflected in the window but when he turned to look there was no one there.

Scowling even more ferociously after that brief flare of hope, Draco decided that maybe he should just get the betrothal over with; there was no point torturing himself with fantasies of Harry coming back to him, so he crossed the room to join Pansy over by the refreshment table. When he reached the table however, Pansy was gone; looking around Draco saw that she was whirling around the dance floor with a dark-haired boy.

"Looking for someone, Draco?" he looked up to see his good friend Blaise Zambini standing near him, "I take it you've decided who you want to marry then."

"It's not a matter of who I want to marry," Draco scoffed as he surveyed the dance floor, trying to see who Pansy's dance partner was, "my father took that option away from me; since I can't be with the person I want to…" he trailed off as he caught sight of the boy Pansy was dancing with; the boy was only an inch or two taller than the Slytherin girl and had messy black hair-the top portion of the boy's face was hidden by a silver mask, but Draco had a feeling he knew who it was; his hunch was realized when the boy looked up and grey met green. "Dance with me for a minute," he grabbed Blaise by the hand and dragged him out onto the dance floor, ignoring his friends protests.

"Draco, I know this is supposed to be a party so you can choose someone to marry," the Italian boy began, grudgingly allowing Draco to lead him in a waltz, "but I really don't want to marry you; no offense."

"None taken," Draco replied, "I have no intention of marrying you either; I merely needed a way to get close to Pansy and Ha-her dance partner. Now, when we get close I want to switch partners-"

"You want me to distract the guy so you can dance with Pansy?"

"Of course not," Draco drawled, "I want to dance with the boy, so get ready." By this time the two boys were close to Pansy, and Draco watched the other couple carefully, biding his time until the mystery boy spun Pansy away, "Now," he said quietly, and Draco smoothly moved to take the mysterious dark-haired boy in his arms, leaving Pansy and Blaise to dance together. The blonde looked down trying to see his dance partner's face, but the other boy was carefully watching his feet so that all Draco could see was his messy black hair; even without seeing his face, however, this boy felt familiar in his arms and he knew it was Harry. "Look at me," he whispered, and ever-so-slowly the boy in his arms tilted his face back until Draco was able to see shining emerald eyes behind that silver mask. "Harry," he breathed, reaching to remove the mask, but the emerald eyed boy stopped him.

"We don't want your father to know I'm here," Harry whispered, "he thinks I'm back in the wizarding realm and I think we should keep it that way for now."

"How are you here?" Draco asked, "I saw you step through the door…"

"And I wound up in your room," Harry smiled softly wrapping his arms around Draco's neck as they swayed back and forth to the music, "where I was greeted by your mother, and she explained to me that I didn't finish saying the ritual words before I stepped through the door; a certain blonde menace interrupted me and then distracted me with a kiss, which _I _think is cheating, but I really shouldn't have expected anything less from a sneaky Slytherin." He mock-glared at Draco and the blonde boy laughed, pulling Harry closer.

"I'll admit that it was my intention to distract you," he said, "but I thought I had failed when you stepped through that door; I completely forgot that you didn't finish the whole "no power over me thing". Hmmm…" he turned thoughtful, his grey eyes glinting mischievously, "I guess that means I _do_ have power over you." He lowered his voice and whispered in the brunette's ear, "How much power do I have Lion?" Harry slapped his shoulder and glared again, fighting back the shiver that was induced by the blonde's seductive tone.

"I told you not to call me that," he said, then gasped when Draco began nibbling on his ear, "Dra-Draco; stop that!" he protested, trying to push him away, "People are watching!"

"Let them," Draco murmured, "They're just jealous that I got to you first." But he complied with Harry's request after placing a gentle kiss on the side of the other boy's neck, "You know I almost had to propose to Pansy?"

"Why do you think I asked her to dance?" Harry laughed up at him, "I knew I had to act fast or all of your mother's careful planning would have been for nothing, and I certainly didn't let her dress me in this outfit just so I could watch you propose to someone else."

"You do look amazing," Draco said as he stepped away to admire Harry's outfit, "Come with me;" he took hold of Harry's hand and led him through the crowded ballroom and outside to a secluded garden full of night-blooming flowers.

"Wow, this is beautiful," Harry breathed as he looked around in awe; the garden was full of different plants with brightly colored blossoms that almost glowed in the moonlight, with luxurious looking couches and chairs scattered across the space, "I've never seen such beautiful flowers at night."

"It's one of my favorite places to go at night when I need time to myself," Draco replied, leading

Harry over to a midnight blue chaise lounge; he sat down and tugged on Harry's hand until the brunette sat next to him before reaching up to remove the silver mask obscuring his features. "Much better," he said softly, and leaned in to gently press his lips against Harry's; the Gryffindor sighed and closed his eyes, leaning into the kiss, but Draco pulled away almost immediately and Harry looked at him, green eyes filled with confusion.

"I wanted to talk to you," Draco said, smiling at Harry, "Harry…" he stroked the younger boy's cheek, "We've known each other for a long time now, ever since we were eleven," he reached down with his free hand and entwined his fingers with Harry's, "Throughout the years you've been the one constant in my life. I've always known what to expect from you, and our relationship has always been passionate; in the beginning it was fueled by anger and-on my part at least-jealousy, but now there's an entirely different kind of passion between us." Draco paused to press another kiss to the brunette's lips and Harry blushed. "A life with you would never be boring, and together we have the power to bring our greatest desires to life. Over the past few years my jealousy of you has become admiration, and even…even love." Harry gasped at this admission and Draco smiled wryly, "Yes, I recently came to realize that I love you, and-even though we're only sixteen-I know my life would be miserable without you. I guess what I'm trying to say is…" he pulled a silver band out of his pocket and presented it to Harry, "Harry James Potter, will you marry me?"

For a few seconds Harry couldn't breathe-the question shouldn't have come as such a surprise, not with the way Draco led up to it and not when he knew that Lucius wanted his son to enter a betrothal tonight, but somehow the question still shocked him. Would he be happy with Draco? He didn't really know the blonde boy, and yet he did. Being rivals for so long Harry had observed certain things about the Slytherin; he knew Draco loved chocolate, his favorite color was midnight blue, his favorite class was Potions, his least favorite-aside from Care of Magical Creatures-was Transfiguration, and-like all Slytherin's-he was extremely loyal to those few people he cared about. And now, somehow, Harry had made it onto that list of people Draco Malfoy cared about. All that aside, hadn't Harry just about fallen apart when he thought that he would never get to be with Draco?

All this ran through his head in a matter of seconds, and Harry met Draco's earnest grey eyes solemnly for a moment before he answered, just one word; "Yes." Harry leaned forward and kissed Draco, it was a quick, hard kiss and he put all his feelings for the blonde into it, before pulling away and locking gazes again, "Yes, I will marry you, Draco Malfoy." Draco slipped the ring onto Harry's finger and the brunette looked down to see that it was a silver band emblazoned with the Malfoy Crest; as he looked at his new ring a bright silver light gathered in the palm of Harry's hand and when it cleared he was left holding a silver band with an unfamiliar coat of arms, and Draco gasped at the sight.

"That's the Peverell Family Crest," he said, "It hasn't been seen in...probably two hundred years-maybe even longer! For it to appear now means that you are descended from one of the Peverell brothers; they were a very prominent pure-blood family, but the name died out generations ago."

"Since it's appearing now I guess I'm supposed to give it to you," Harry said, "Is it custom for both partners to wear an engagement ring?"

"Yes," Draco said, "Both partners wear the bonding ring to show that they are committed to the relationship; once the proposal has been accepted the rings are exchanged." He held out his hand and allowed Harry to slide the ring on his finger and then gave the other boy a chaste kiss before asking, "Aren't you interested in learning about your family history?"

"Maybe later," Harry replied, twining his hands in Draco's hair and pulling the blonde's head towards him, "Right now I'm more interested in you." He tilted his head up and Draco accepted the invitation, smirking just a little as he captured Harry's willing lips with his own; he nibbled gently on Harry's bottom lip until the brunette granted him entrance and a brief battle for dominance ensued, before Draco drew Harry's tongue into his own mouth and sucked on it, drawing a moan from the younger boy. Emboldened by this, Draco pulled away from Harry's mouth and trailed his lips across the other boy's cheek over to his ear; he licked the shell of the brunette's ear before taking his earlobe in his mouth and sucking on it. Harry and cried out in surprise when the Slytherin bit down harshly on his earlobe; the little bit of pain combined with pleasure was enough to make Harry's head spin and he offered no protest when Draco pushed on his shoulder, having him recline on the chair, although the blonde was careful to keep their pelvises from touching-he didn't want to rush his new fiancé.

"You're so beautiful," Draco whispered, pulling back to look into those emerald orbs, "You know I meant what I said earlier; somehow you've managed to make me fall in love with you."

"I love you too," Harry replied, drawing the blonde head down for another kiss; Draco permitted this for a moment before drawing away once again to trail kisses down the Gryffindor's neck to the hollow of his throat; he scraped his teeth against the pulse point he found there and grinned when Harry gasped and tightened his grip on Draco's platinum locks. He pressed a gentle kiss against the pulse in his throat before trailing his lips lower as his nimble fingers undid the first few buttons on the younger boy's shirt; Draco left little biting kisses along Harry's collar bone and lapped at the junction between neck and shoulder before biting down and sucking at the skin hard enough to leave a bruise, enjoying the harsh pants and soft whimpers coming from the brunette's lips.

"Oh no, it's just as I feared; this garden is infested with snargles," the dreamy voice intruded upon their solitude and Draco looked up from his task of seducing Harry to see that Luna was standing nearby with Narcissa. It took Harry a few seconds longer to focus and get his ragged breathing under control; he turned his head to the side and looked dazedly at Luna, the flush on his face slowly cooling.

"Luna, Mother; what brings you out here?" Draco inquired, then yelped when Harry pushed him off the chaise lounge, his flush coming back full force as he scrambled to re-do his buttons with one hand, the other feeling around for his mask so that he could see again. "What was that for?" Draco demanded, standing up and glaring down at the Gryffindor.

"Your mom's here," Harry muttered, "Where's my mask? Your mom transfigured it out of my glasses so I can't see without it."

"Here," Draco located the mask and placed it on Harry's face before turning back to his mother and Luna, "Did you need us Mother?"

"Your father is anxious to find out who your intended is," Narcissa replied, fighting back a smile at the boys antics, "He is currently taking stock of the guests still remaining inside, and I thought you would want to announce your decision before he realizes that all of the potential candidates for your hand are still inside."

"Of course; thank you, Mother," Draco smiled and offered Harry a hand, pulling him off the couch. He made quick work of straightening both of their clothing and accepted a comb from Narcissa to fix his platinum locks; he made a movement to fix Harry's unruly hair as well, but the brunette smiled ruefully and shook his head.

"It won't work," he informed his fiancé, "Nothing ever works on my hair; evidently I inherited it from my father."

"Then we should go," Narcissa smiled, "Normally a betrothal contract would be signed by either the couple who is betrothed or their guardians if the couple is underage; who is your legal guardian Harry?"

"My aunt and uncle," Harry replied, "at least, they are my guardians until I can get Sirius back. Oh, and prove his innocence; until then Dumbledore said I am stuck with my mother's family." He met Narcissa's gaze frankly, "They won't sign anything for me; I found a letter in Dudley's-that's my cousin-room and Dumbledore has been paying them to keep tabs on me and treat me like shit, excuse my language."

"Very well; we can wait until Sirius is freed from the veil to draw up the contract," Narcissa said, "For tonight a public announcement and the exchanging of rings will suffice. I see you have already exchanged rings, but it would be better to do it in view of everyone." She watched as Harry and Draco removed their rings and then she tapped Harry's mask with her wand, "There; now once you have exchanged rings the mask will revert back to your glasses-we really must get your eyesight fixed, Dear-and your identity shall be revealed. Are we ready?" She smiled at their assent before taking Luna's arm, "Lady Luna and I shall enter before you; wait for my signal Dragon, and then you and Harry enter together." She kissed both boys on their cheek and gave them a bright smile, then she turned to enter the ballroom, arm-in-arm with Luna. Narcissa left the door open a crack so that the boys could hear the noise inside and Harry and Draco stood together just outside the ballroom entrance, holding hands as they waited for their cue to enter. After a few moments the noise from the ballroom died down, and they could hear Narcissa speaking.

"Tonight we have gathered so that my son, Draco Malfoy, heir to the throne of the Fae Realm, could choose a partner to share in the joys and sorrows of his life," Narcissa spoke in a soft voice that none-the-less carried throughout the room and even to the patio where the boys were waiting, "I am pleased to tell you that Prince Draco has indeed chosen his consort. As you know, we of the fae love a little bit of mystery, and so my sons chosen shall remain masked until the betrothal rings have been exchanged. And now, I give you your future ruler, Prince Draco." Draco squeezed Harry's hand and they entered the ballroom side-by-side. Narcissa was standing in the middle of the ballroom on a raised platform along with Luna and Lucius; Luna and Narcissa were smiling at the two boys, while Lucius was smirking. As Harry and Draco ascended the platform Lucius put a hand on Draco's shoulder and leaned in to speak to him.

"I'm pleased with you Son," Lucius said, "I know you don't understand right now, but I really do just want what is best for you; you're doing the right thing and will be a credit to our lord when the time comes."

"No Father," Draco replied, "You want what is best for you; I am getting betrothed as you ordered, but I will not be joining the Dark Lord, and I will see you pay for your interference, so enjoy your victory father-it will be short-lived." With that Draco swept past his father, tugging Harry along with him until they stood beside Narcissa. "People of the realm, I thank you for being here tonight to witness my betrothal; tonight we shall cite the vows of betrothal and exchange rings as is customary among us." He turned to his mother and bowed, "Queen Narcissa, I would be honored if you would lead us in the exchange of vows." Harry didn't hear her reply because Luna chose that moment to whisper some last-minute instructions in his ear, but he assumed Narcissa agreed because she turned to face the crowd, bidding Draco and Harry to face one another.

"As Prince Draco was the one to propose, his intended shall take the oath first," Narcissa announced, "Do you have the ring, Prince Draco?" Draco held up the Malfoy signet ring for all to see and Narcissa nodded solemnly before turning to address Harry, "Repeat after me:

_This ring, the symbol of my oath_

_Will hold me to the words I speak:_

_All I refuse and thee I choose." _¹

Harry repeated the words quietly as Draco slipped the ring out onto his finger and kissed Harry once on each cheek; the ceremony continued with Draco repeating the oath as Harry slid the ring onto his finger and kissing Draco on the cheek. Draco took both of Harry's hands in his own larger ones and completed the ceremony.

"As the scion of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black and heir to the Noble House of Malfoy, I welcome you to our family," Draco said solemnly, and Harry replied; "As the scion of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Peverell and heir to the Noble House of Potter, I am honored to plight my troth with you, and look forward to the day when our families shall be united as one." There was a loud gasp from the wizarding families in the crowd at the mention of the names Potter and Peverell-the former because they knew the only Potter remaining alive was none other than the boy-who-lived and the latter because there had previously been no known descendants of the Peverell family alive-but Harry and Draco paid them no heed as Draco pulled the brunette closer and Harry tilted his head for the kiss that would seal the betrothal. The kiss was soft and sweet, and a band of silver light wrapped around the boys and was drawn into the rings; Harry gasped as he felt the power settle around him, binding him to keep the promise he had made. When the light faded Harry and Draco parted to look at the crowd, and were confronted by an angry Lucius Malfoy.

"Draco! What is the meaning of this?" Lucius demanded, "This boy was supposed to be returned to the wizarding realm, never to return; you dare to act against the contract? Need I remind you son, you signed in blood; to renege on that is to bring a curse upon our family! This boy must go!"

"Silence!" Narcissa commanded, "First of all, this is a Fae matter, so those visiting us from the wizarding realm will be returned now." She waved her hand and there were flashes of light throughout the ballroom as those guests with no fae blood were transported back to their homes. Once that was done, Narcissa addressed the remaining guests, "As Queen of the Fae, I call for an immediate trial of Lucius Malfoy, and do hereby accuse him of being an oath breaker."

"What?" Lucius exclaimed, "Come Narcissa; you can't be serious! I did what was best for our family! You cannot honestly tell me that you want this-this _half-blood_ to become part of our family! The Dark Lord will destroy us!"

"Of course I'm not Sirius," Narcissa replied, "but my cousin will be among us again in time; as for Harry Potter, he is a fine young man, descended from the Potter line and the Peverell's; in addition his mother was one of the smartest witches of our age, and that's not even mentioning his own accomplishments; Draco could not make a finer match. Now, you are accused of breaking the oath sworn to your son, Draco Malfoy, in regards to the fate of the Labyrinth challenger, Harry Potter. You swore upon your throne and your life that you would in no way interfere in the challenges of the Labyrinth or the fate of Harry after the completion of the labyrinth; you violated this oath by using Harry's friends to trap him into giving up his right to remain in the realm after completion of the Labyrinth. For the crime of breaking your oath I-"

"Wait!" Lucius interrupted, "Before this goes any further, I demand to know how it is that Harry Potter was able to return to the realm after completing the Labyrinth as it was a direct violation of the contract he signed in blood; until this sentencing is over, I am still king and my demand must be answered!" Narcissa narrowed her eyes at her husband but still bowed her head in acquiescence.

"Very well," she said, "We shall review the events starting from ten minutes before you spoke with Harry in the hallway." She drew out a shining orb and it expanded into a viewing screen; the whole room watched as Harry materialized on the landing, and the clock stuck the eleventh hour, them Lucius showed up, followed by Draco. They watched as Lucius forced Harry to sign the contract, using his friends as leverage, and as Draco sent everyone back where they belonged, before being trapped in the dungeons by Lucius; then it showed Harry back in the hallway again as the clock once more struck the hour and he entered the stone maze; it was here that Narcissa paused the scene. "Well, I think it's quite obvious what happened here," she said, shooting an amused glance at Harry, "When Harry was released from the dungeon, he somehow caused the clock to strike the hour again, when in reality it was already ten minutes past the eleventh hour of the challenge; essentially, Harry reset the clock that chimed the hour, but he did not reset the time, which means that it was ten minutes later than he thought it was."

"So you're saying that when the clock struck the thirteenth hour, it was actually ten minutes late?" Draco clarified, "Instead of stepping through the doorway just as the clock struck thirteen, he was actually ten minutes past the thirteen hour time limit." Narcissa nodded, smiling, "How did he manage that?"

"Harry dear, what were you thinking of when you left the dungeon?" Narcissa inquired, and Harry closed his eyes as he thought back a few hours.

"Well, I was pissed at Lucius," he remembered, "I had a plan for what I would do when I solved the labyrinth and he screwed it up, which I knew meant I would never have the chance to really get to know Draco since I could not willingly fail the Labyrinth. I remember wishing that there was some way I could stay in the realm without having to sacrifice my pride."

"Well, there you have it," Narcissa laughed softly, "Harry wanted so badly to be able to stay here without giving up that his accidental magic leaked out and basically broke our clocks."

"So, what you're saying," Harry said slowly, "is that I lost the challenge of the Labyrinth because I was outsmarted…by myself?" Narcissa nodded, trying to hide a smile at his indignant expression; Draco didn't even try to hide his amusement and was rewarded with a slap upside his head, making him scowl at his fiancé.

"Now that we know why Harry was able to stay here perhaps we can continue?" Draco suggested, "Lucius is an oath breaker, and as such his life and crown are forfeit."

"That is true," Narcissa agreed, casting a silencing spell on Lucius when he tried to protest, "As Queen of Terre de Espérer Éternelle I do hereby relieve you of the right to wear the crown and rule this land." As Harry watched a golden glow surrounded Lucius, seeming to come from his very skin, and radiated outward until it transferred over to Narcissa, and Lucius was left looking haggard; there was obviously magic at work, because he stumbled when the golden glow left him. "Lucius Malfoy has been stripped of the title of King of Terre de Espérer Éternelle in accordance with the oath he swore; in addition, his life is now forfeit," she met Lucius's cold grey eyes with her own steady blue ones, "You are to remain in the dungeon until We decide your fate." As she spoke a portal opened below Lucius' feet, and he soon vanished from the ballroom; now Narcissa addressed her remaining subjects; "This has been an eventful evening for all of us; my family and I shall retire now, but please feel free to avail yourself of our hospitality." She bowed her head briefly as the crowd offered her curtsies and bows, and then she swept out of the ballroom, closely followed by Luna, Draco and Harry.

*********************************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note*****************************************************************************

**Another chapter done, and the Labyrinth part of the story had been resolved; yay! Now we get to deal with Dumbledore, Sirius, and Old Voldie. I have already started the next chapter, and I will have it up ASAP. Let me know what you think so far! Oh; I also finally decided to name the goblin realm; the name is in French and translates to "Land of Eternal Hope". I know it's corny, but I really couldn't come up with anything better, and at least it sounds good in French, LOL. And thank you all once again for the kind reviews!**

**This is an excerpt from the Forbidden Game Book 1: The Hunt by LJ Smith; I've always liked that little oath and was excited to use it here.**


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

Narcissa led them down the hallway and into an informal sitting room where she called upon a goblin to bring them light refreshments.

"What do you intend to do with father?" Draco inquired as he sat in the loveseat, pulling Harry down with him.

"I intend to trade him for someone else," Narcissa replied, "With Harry's permission of course." She nodded to the brunette who looked startled.

"Me?" he asked, "Why do you need my permission?"

"Because you are the heir," Luna replied in a sing-song voice, "the whifflehammers won't give anyone else access, so you hold the key." Harry and Draco gave her a blank stare, but Narcissa nodded her agreement, smiling softly.

"She's right," Narcissa said, "You are the heir of the House of Black, and no one else-not even myself or Draco with the Black blood running through our veins-has access to the vaults. Harry dear, there is a ritual I may use to exchange a person here for someone who has fallen through the veil; it merely requires a connection between the persons to be exchanged, and a certain artifact that lies in the Black family vault. Of course, you won't have access to the vault until you come of age, but that would be the safest way to get Sirius back with us. So, Harry; do you agree?"

"Yes, of course," Harry replied eagerly, "I will do whatever it takes to get Sirius back, but…"he paused uncertainly, looking back and forth between Draco and Narcissa, "are you sure you want to do this? Lucius is your husband, and Draco's father; why would you trade his life for Sirius'?"

"Because Father is an oath breaker," Draco replied, "and his life is forfeit, one way or another; at least this way something good will come of it."

"Exactly," Narcissa agreed, "Also, by sending Lucius through the veil he will not be completely lost to us; when the time comes and the Dark Lord has been defeated, the strength of our bonds-my marriage to Lucius and the shared blood between Draco and his father-will be enough that we may bring him back in the future. So you see, Harry, by helping you get your godfather back we are not truly losing Lucius; this may, in fact, save him as it will remove him from the Dark Lord's reach."

"Well, in that case this sounds like a great plan," Harry enthused, before frowning, "I just wish it didn't have to wait a whole year; I just turned sixteen today!"

"It won't take that long," Luna said, "you'll have to hurry and get ready to make your appointment at Gringotts, so we'd best get changed as soon as Hedwig brings the letter."

"What let-" Harry left off what he was saying as there was a tap at the window; he moved to get up, but Draco placed a hand on his shoulder and stood instead, moving over to the window and opening it to allow the snowy white owl entrance. "Hedwig!" Harry cried, greeting his owl happily; he took the letter from her and gave her a bit of toast from his plate. Hedwig accepted the treat and nipped his fingers affectionately before flying twice around the room and then resting atop a bookshelf.

"Shall I have her taken to the owlry?" Narcissa suggested and Harry nodded, thanking her as he opened the letter; the seal was unfamiliar to him, but once he unfolded the piece of parchment he saw that it was a letter from Gringotts.

"_To Mr. Harry James Potter,_

_In accordance with your parents wishes you shall receive your full inheritance upon your sixteenth birthday; per there behest you will be recognized as an adult, and be given full access to the vaults of Peverell, Potter, and Black. In addition to this you will hear the full reading of the wills as dictated by Lily Potter neé Evans and James Potter, and that of Sirius Black, and be given information on your financial holdings. You have an appointment with Nagnok at precisely ten a.m. the morning of July thirty-first. Please hold onto this letter as it will become a portkey when the hour approaches. _

_May your family prosper and your gold continue to multiply,_

_ Thurakov, Head Goblin, Gringotts Bank, London."_

"Well, it seems Luna was right again," Draco drawled, "Do you want me to accompany you to the bank?"

"Yes," Harry nodded, then turned to Narcissa, "I'd like you to come as well, if you can; that way you can make sure we get the artifact from the Black family vault. And, of course, you can come too Luna. Hmm; after Gringotts would we be able to get my belongings from the Dursley's?"

"Of course I'll go with you," Narcissa agreed, "and we should have plenty of time to gather your belongings before we return here; now, everyone hurry and change into some appropriate clothing-I'll help you, Luna dear-and be back down here in fifteen minutes so we don't miss the portkey. Dragon, that means you don't have time for a shower; simply change into some wizarding robes and come straight back down." She didn't wait for an answer, but ushered Luna out of the room and hastened down the hallway.

"I suppose we had best hurry then," Draco said, raising an eyebrow as he towed Harry out of the room, "I have some robes you can borrow until you get your belongings."

"All I have are school robes," Harry shrugged, "I suppose I should get some more, as well as some decent clothing since I won't have to stay with my relatives any longer; I hate having to shop!"

"Don't worry," Draco smirked, "Mother and I will help you get some new clothes, but it will most likely have to wait for another day; I don't know about you, but I feel as if I've been up for a week straight! When we get back from London I believe I shall go straight to bed."

"That sounds like a good idea," Harry grinned as they reached Draco's bedroom, "If it weren't for the promise of being freed from the Dursley's-and Dumbledore!-I would go to bed right now!"

"Eager to get in my bed, huh?" Draco smirked, "I must say I like your attitude! Hey!" He ducked as Harry swatted at his head, "It's not my fault; you're the one who said you want to go to bed!" Harry glared at the blonde but then shook his head and watched as Draco dug through his wardrobe and tossed Harry a set of silk robes done in dark grey with pale green edging; he quickly donned them over his current outfit, while Draco pulled on a set of dark blue robes with silver edging. "Ready Lion?"

"Yeah, I'm ready," Harry said, walking back down the hallway with Draco, "I'm never going to get you to stop calling me that, am I?"

"Nope," Draco smirked, "So you had better get used to it. Come along; we only have a few more minutes before the portkey activates." He linked arms with Harry and the two hurried down the hall back to the sitting room, where they found Luna and Narcissa already waiting; Narcissa was trying to talk Luna out of wearing a necklace made of brightly colored mushrooms.

"But they bring good luck and offer protection," Luna protested, "We will need their power today."

"Luna dear, those mushrooms release poisonous fumes if they get hot," Narcissa said patiently, "It's a risk we cannot take; please leave them behind." Luna pouted but set the necklace on the table, "Excellent; now the portkey will be activating in about one minute, so everyone take hold of the letter." The small group gathered around the letter, each person holding onto a corner of the parchment. As he felt the familiar and uncomfortable pull of the portkey, Harry noticed Luna snatch up the mushroom necklace and slip it into a pocket of her robe; moments later the ground fell out from under his feet, and then he found himself stumbling in a small stone chamber.

"I hate portkeys; portkeys and floo!" he grumbled, allowing Draco to steady him, "Why haven't wizards developed a better way to travel?"

"We have," Draco drawled, amused, "It's called apparition. Here we're too young to get our license, but when we get back to Terre de Espérer Éternelle I can teach you how to apparate; in the realm everyone over the age of fifteen can apparate once they pass the test."

"Good morning Mr. Potter," the group turned to see a goblin standing at the entrance to the small room, "My name is Nagnok and, if you will follow me to my office, we can get started. Is it your wish that everyone in this room be present for the reading of the wills?"

"It is," Harry affirmed, grasping Draco's hand.

"Very well; Albus Dumbledore is waiting in the main room of the bank," Nagnok advised him, "He has requested that he be present for the reading as well."

"No," Harry shook his head, "I don't want him anywhere near me today."

"As you will, sir," Nagnok bowed slightly, "Please, follow me." He led the group down a well-lit stone passageway; they passed numerous offices, most of which were dark and had the door closed, before they reached Nagnok's office. "Please; sit," he gestured at the chairs in front of the desk as he took his own behind it, "We will start with the wills of James Potter and Lily Potter neé Evans." He picked up a small silver box and removed the lid to lift out a small object which he placed on top of the desk in front of Harry. The object was spherical and looked to be covered with silver feathers. "Please pick up the memory sphere and state your full name." Harry picked up the object as instructed and said his name.

"Harry James Potter." He watched as the wings unfurled, revealing a translucent snitch with a white lily inside it, and the ghostly forms of his parents appeared and began to speak.

"I, James Potter, and my wife, Lily Potter, both being of sound mind and sound body, do hereby relate our last will and testament to the goblin Thurakov. If something should happen to us, it is our wish that our son, Harry James Potter, be given into the guardianship of his godfather, Sirius Black; Padfoot, you are the best friend I could ever ask for, and I know that you will anything necessary to protect Harry. If for any reason Sirius is unable to take Harry-"

"You mean if he upsets the wrong person with one of his pranks and has to go into hiding," Lily said drily, but there was a smile on her face, "If Sirius is unable to take Harry, then our second choice for guardian of Harry are Frank and Alice Longbottom; they have been true friends to us, and Harry and Neville always have so much fun when we're all able to get together." Lily had a soft smile on her face for a moment before her expression hardened. "Under no circumstances is Harry to be placed with my sister Petunia and her husband, Vernon Dursley; they abhor everything to do with magic, and I don't trust them to treat Harry right."

"That's right," James nodded his agreement, "If for some reason the Longbottoms and Sirius are both unable to assume guardianship of Harry, we leave him in the care of Albus Dumbledore; Albus has done his best to look after us and I know that he will do what's best for Harry. Whoever assumes Harry's guardianship will have access to the Potter vaults so that they may use the funds as necessary to take care of our son. Now, onto the…what did you call it Dear? The distribution of our worldly goods to those deserving enough to receive them?"

"No Love," Lily laughed, "You made up that phrase to make yourself sound smarter, but please; continue."

"Spoil sport," James pouted, "Alright then, starting with Sirius once again; to my best friend, the ultimate Marauder, I leave the Potter Villa in the South of France because he always enjoyed the beach so much; the silver trunk that's in the Potter vault also goes to Sirius-to be shared with Remy-as it holds all of our Marauder Momentos, as well as some as-yet-untried plans. I also leave Remy-that is, Remus Lupin-twenty-thousand galleons and the cottage in Germany-it's secluded enough that you won't have to worry about your furry-little problem; no arguments now Moony-you deserve this and more! And to Peter Pettigrew I leave ten thousand galleons and the rights to Maurader's Enterprises and access to the vault I have set up to get the business off the ground, all of which is to be held in trust until Harry is of age. Padfoot; you don't get any money, however, as Harry's godfather, you have full access to the Potter vaults-don't be afraid to use what you need. Lily?"

"I only have one person to mention in this will," Lily smiled, "and that is Severus Snape; Severus, you were the first person to tell me I was a witch, and you introduced me to the wizarding world; even now it still hurts that our paths are so far apart. For you, Severus, I leave an iron-bound box, currently being kept safe in the Potter vault; I found out some information during our seventh year, but Albus made me swear a wizard's oath that I would not tell you this secret so long as I lived-the box can only be opened by you. Oh! I leave my jewelry box and all of my books to Cissy Black; our families may have been torn apart by this war, but we swore an oath to be as sister's to one another, and I will always see you as my sister; until such time as it is safe for you to receive these items, I will leave them in the care of Augusta Longbottom." Lily looked at her husband, and he started speaking again.

"Aside from the afore-mentioned items, everything we own is to be given to our son, Harry James Potter," James said, "This, of course, includes our vaults, all of the Potter properties-the manor in Wiltshire, the villa in Greece, and the house in Godric's Hollow; they need some work done on them, but the villa should be livable. Also, Lily and I have discussed this, and if the two of us and Sirius die in this war, then we want Harry to be given his independence and be treated as an adult upon his sixteenth birthday; these are dangerous times and we feel that Harry will need this advantage; use it wisely, son."

"Always remember that we love you," Lily said, "and, if you have any problems, you can trust Sirius with your life; be safe, Love." As the images of his parents faded, Harry found himself wiping tears from his eyes and looked over at Narcissa.

"You used to be close to my Mum?" he asked.

"Yes," Narcissa smiled softly, a glint of tears in her eyes, "Lily and I were close once upon a time, until I was betrothed to Lucius and forced to choose sides in the first wizarding war; if it had been up to me, I would have remained neutral so that I could keep my friendship with your mother, but Lucius would not allow it. I'll be glad to tell you more about your mother sometime; maybe Augusta will be willing to give me those books...Now then; shall we hear Cousin Sirius' will?" She turned to the goblin who nodded his agreement and took out another memory globe; this one was a clear sphere with a full moon and a lightning bolt inside it.

"This is the memory globe of Sirius Black," Nagnok informed Harry, handing over the sphere, "and he has set it to be activated with a password which he said you would know, Mr. Potter."

"A password?" Harry frowned, "I have no idea; the only thing I can think of is-of course!" He shook his head at the memory globe, "Really Sirius? There are at least four people, besides you, me and Moony who know that password. Of course, they are all people I would trust with my life, so I guess it's not too bad…Ow! What was that for?" He glared at his fiancé, who had just hit him upside the head.

"Will you stop babbling and say the password already?" Draco scowled, "I don't know about you, but I'm tired; I've been up for over twenty-four hours already, and we have a lot to do before we can go home."

"You didn't have to hit me," Harry pouted, "Just for that, I'm not showing you the Marauder's Map!"

"You have "The Map"?" Narcissa demanded, "Sirius never would show me the map, but I overheard them talking about it numerous times; can I see it?"

"It's with my stuff at the Dursley's," Harry replied, "but I'll let you see it later; _you've_ never been mean to me." He shot a glare at the scowling blonde, and Draco suddenly grinned at him, raising Harry's hand to his lips and kissing it, maintaining eye contact the whole time and bringing a slight flush to the brunette's face. "Stop that," Harry snapped, pulling his hand away and trying to hide his embarrassment, "Alright, here goes; I solemnly swear I am up to no good." They watched for a moment but nothing happened, and Harry slapped his hand to his forehead; "Ah! I should have known; it's the other password." He shot a look at Draco, "Just remember; Sirius made up this password, not me. Sneaky slimy Snivellus Snape is a giant greasy git of a bat with big black billowing robes and a long, pointy, nosey-nose." As Harry finished speaking the memory globe glowed for a moment and the image of Sirius Black appeared.

"I, Sirius Black, being of sound mind and sound body, do hereby relay my last will and testament to the goblin Nagnok," Sirius said, and then grinned, "Heya Pup! Now that I'm out of Azkaban I thought it would be a good idea to re-do my will; luckily the goblins don't care much about wizarding criminals, as long as we aren't trying to steal their gold!" He gave that familiar harsh bark of laughter that Harry had come to love over the past couple of years. "So, Harry; if you're watching this it means that I've died-and don't go blaming yourself Pup-I know how you are. First, to Moony-that is Remus Lupin-I give him all the money in my vaults, except for number 313; vault number 313 goes to the Heir of the House of Black, which would be you, Harry. And Lupin, don't argue about the money; we all know how unjust the wizarding world is to you; use the money when you need it and, if you're able to get the anti-werewolf legislation changed in the future, you can donate the rest. Also to Moony, I give the box of Maruader's memorabilia in the attic of Grimmauld Place, on condition that you let Harry look at it and you teach your future kids what it means to be a Marauder. Harry, Pup; leaving you after having such a short time together is the only thing that frightens me about dying. As the last male to carry the name Black, I hereby name you Heir to the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black; this means that Grimmauld Place is yours, as is the cottage in the Black Woods in Germany, the Villa in Italy, and the new property I purchased in the United States; it's a beach house in Florida-I really hope this turns out to be just paranoia on my part, because I can't wait to show you Miami! Also, I'm giving you my motorcycle; Hagrid still has it from what I've heard, and it should be in good condition so just be careful when learning how to operate it. As Heir to the House of Black you also have access to the Black vaults, however there is also a Scion to the House of Black; it has to be someone with Black blood in their veins, so that would be Draco Malfoy, and he will have access to the vaults as well on his seventeenth birthday. Well, I guess that's about it Pup; I just want you to know Harry, I am very proud of you, and you need to stop blaming yourself for everything-this war is not your fault, and you are not to blame for the people we have lost. One last thing; don't trust Dubmledore; he's not what he appears to be. Well, be safe Pup, and kick old Voldies ass!" Sirius' image faded out, and Harry was surprised when Draco reached over to wipe the tears off his face; he hadn't even realized he'd been crying.

"Don't worry Lion," Draco whispered, "We'll get him back soon." He gave Harry a soft kiss on the lips and Harry smiled thankfully at him.

"I'm okay," he said quietly, "It was just…a little painful to see him like that." He held onto Draco's hand and smiled warmly at Luna when she sat on the arm of his chair, leaning against him confortably, "So, Nagnok; is there anything I need to sign, or was that it?"

"There is no signature required for the wills of Potter and Black," Nagnok said, "However, I have another inheritance here for you;" he slid a blank piece of parchment in front of Harry, "This just requires a drop of blood for authentication." Without hesitation, Harry held out his hand and allowed the goblin to prick his finger; the blood dripped onto the parchment and words began to appear in golden, spidery script. When completed, the parchment read:

"This will is intended to be viewed by the descendants of the Peverell Family; to be specific, the current heir and/or scion. The acknowledged heir and scion of the Ancient and Most Noble House of Peverell, one Harry James Potter, now has access to the Peverell vaults; the contents of the vaults are to be used as needed, but do not take any item from the vault unless you have need of it, and, if possible, return the item when done. Good luck to you, young heir and always hold true to the tenets of our family; verum, diligo quod veneration."

"Truth, love and honor," Narcissa translated softly as Harry finished reading the letter, "Those are good tenets to live by. So, Nagnok, young Harry is now considered an adult, is that correct?"

"Yes," Nagnok replied, "However, I heard young Master Malfoy mention bringing Sirius Black back; if Sirius is to return then Mr. Potter will be considered a minor once more, and if he is unable to have his name cleared then Mr. Potter will have to be placed back under Albus Dumbledore's guardianship."

"I have a question," Draco said before anyone else could reply, "Did Dumbledore ever hear the Potter's will?" Nagnok reviewed a folder in front him and nodded.

"Yes, I show that Albus Dumbledore listened to the Potter's will on October 31, 1981," he informed them, "He contacted the Head Goblin at ten minutes before midnight and set up a confidential arrangement to be able to hear the will in a private room; according to this footnote, the arrangement allowed him to listen to the will without even having a member of the bank present and he was on his honor to advise us of any important facts in the will. According to my file, he said that he was named as trustee for the Potter's and was also named guardian for Harry Potter."

"So not only did he prevent the Potter's belongings from being distributed," Harry looked at Narcissa, who was frowning as she spoke to Nagnok, "but he also sent Mr. Potter to live with the Dursley's against James and Lily's wishes, and he lied to the Head Goblin, is that correct?"

"Yes," Nagnok said, and Harry noticed he had a steely glint in his eyes, "Those are matters that will be addressed; I will inform Thurakov. You may also be interested in reviewing your financial statements, Mr. Potter; I have marked the areas that I thought you might want to pay attention to." The goblin handed him a piece of parchment with several lines glowing softly; for every withdrawal there was a detailed explanation, and Nagnok advised him that it was updated automatically by magic. Harry didn't really know much about finances, but one thing was abundantly clear to him;

"Dumbledor's been stealing my money!" he said, "Look!" He held the parchment so that Draco could see it, and Narcissa came to stand behind his chair so that she could read it as well. "He's been stealing from me since I was a baby; I know he didn't use any of that money for me because the Dursley's were always complaining about taking me in for free." There was silence for a moment as he continued to scan the parchment, "Oh, and look at this; he's been paying the Dursley's to spy on my and keep me in the house all summer! He even paid them extra to keep me from going on the cruise with the Weasley's; Vernon isn't even at a conference-Dumbledore used _my_ _account_ to give them an all-expenses paid vacation in Italy!" Harry narrowed his eyes at Nagnok; "I want to lock my accounts so that Dumbledore doesn't have access anymore, and cut of the funds paying for the Dursley's vacation."

"It will be done as you ask," Nagnok said, "Would you like to make any other changes to the handling of your vaults and property?" Harry looked at Narcissa for assistance.

"I don't really know how to handle things like this," he told her, "What would you recommend?"

"You should have a personal accountant to manage everything for you," Narcissa suggested, "but you should review everything once a month, and have a meeting to review all of your accounts in-depth at least twice a year. Gringott's can set you up with an accountant, and I can help you review everything until you feel comfortable handling it. You should get copies of everything so that we can take it with us."

"Can you do that for me?" Harry asked the goblin, "Just make copies of all the financial documents, and get me a list of the items in the vaults and the properties I own?" Nagnok nodded his assent, and Harry continued, "Good; I'd also like for you to see to the distribution of items to the people named in my parents and Sirius' will, in fact-Nagnok, would you be willing to sign on as my accountant?"

"I would be honored," Nagnok gave a slight bow, his nose brushing the top of the desk, "I can have a contract drawn up immediately once we agree upon wages-"

"I'll pay what ever your normal wages are," Harry said dismissively, "I trust you; we would like to visit the Black Vault, if you can have the contract drawn up while we're there I'll sign it before we leave."

"As you say, Mr. Potter," Nagnok agreed and then stood, "If you would follow me, I'll have someone take you to the Black Vault; here are the keys to your new vaults, as well as the properties outlined in the wills." He handed Harry a ring with numerous keys in different shapes, sizes and colors, and then led the little group out to the bank's main lobby.

"Ah, Harry my boy!" Harry jerked his head up at that familiar cheery tone and saw Albus Dumbledore standing just inside the entrance doors, "I'm so happy to see you! You gave us all a fright you know, when you vanished from your aunt's house; your cousin was dreadfully worried." He turned a frown on Draco, "Mr. Malfoy, I understand that you were merely following the rules of your kingdom when you kidnapped Harry, however you should have alerted someone!"

"I wasn't kidnapped," Harry said, rolling his eyes, "I wished Dudley away, and then made a deal with Draco to have him returned because I decided I'd rather risk being trapped in Terre…the Goblin Realm, than put up with my relative's here. Alas, I lost so now I must live in the Goblin Realm with Draco." As he said this, Harry reached out to take Draco's hand in his own, "The good news is Draco and I have come to an understanding, and the even better news is that I know all about you."

"Harry, I'm sure we have a lot to discuss-" Dumbledore began, but Harry cut him off;

"Yes, we do," Harry confirmed, "but it will have to wait until later; right now I have business to take care of. Besides, I'd rather wait until my accountant finishes compiling all the information for me to review." He glanced at Nagnok who took the hint and bowed.

"I have an escort ready for you, Mr. Potter," the goblin said, and another goblin stepped up, "This is Ravlow; once you have finished at the vault he will escort you back to my office so we can conclude things."

"Thank you," Harry nodded, "We'll talk later, Professor."

"This way please, Mr. Potter," Ravlow said, and led the party down to the vault carts; the carts weren't really meant for four people, to accompany the goblin, but Draco solved that problem by insisting that a blushing Harry sit on his lap. Luna sat up front, and Harry could hear her pestering the goblin the whole way down. The party passed through a waterfall that nullified disguises and invisibility spells, and finally came to a stop deep down under the earth in front of a large golden door with the Black Family Crest on it.

"In order for you to be granted access to the vault your identity must be confirmed," Ravlow informed Harry, "Please place your left hand against the door, underneath the crest." Harry did as he was told and the door glowed a bright red and gold for a moment and then the door melted away revealing a dark archway that led into the vault. "I will wait outside until you have finished."

"Thank you," Harry said as he entered the vault, closely followed by Draco and Narcissa-Luna stayed outside to continue talking to Ravlow, "What artifact do we need out of here?"

"Don't you want to look around and see what's here?" Draco asked him as he perused the items piled on the floor and lining shelves against the wall, "After all, this stuff does belong to you…and me, of course. Ow!" He cursed when the goblet he touched burned his hand, "What the hell?"

"Draco! Language!" Narcissa chastised, "You aren't of age yet, which means that you can't touch anything in here without it burning you; right now Harry is the only one who can access the vault. Now, Harry dear, did you want to look around first?"

"Not really," Harry shrugged, "I won't be able to keep anything once Sirius is back anyway."

"Very well," Narcissa smiled, "The artifact we need is a miniature of the Black family crest; it's about the size of my open hand, and is encrusted with precious gemstones-garnets, onyx, diamonds, sapphires…you get the idea. It should be in a silver box encrusted with emeralds."

"Slytherins," Harry said, shaking his head; he ducked to avoid the slap that Draco aimed at the back of his head, "Hey! Why are you always hitting me?"

"I'm not," Draco scowled, "I _try_ to hit you, but you usually dodge out of the way;" he leveled a glare at his fiancé, "You should really stop that by the way; I wouldn't try to hit you if you didn't insult me, therefore you always deserve it. Besides, you've hit me too!" He followed Harry as the brunette walked through the vault, looking for the box containing the Black family crest, "Stop acting so injured Li-mmph!"

"Don't even!" Harry clapped his hand over Draco's mouth, oblivious to Narcissa's amused gaze, "It's bad enough you _insist _ on calling me that in private, you _will not_ call me pet names infont of your mother! Ah! Gross!" He wiped his hand on his robes and glared at the blonde, "You licked my hand! What's your deal Malfoy?" He stiffened when Draco leaned in to whisper in his ear;

"You know, there are other things I could lick Harry," to illustrate his point he licked the shell of Harry's ear, making him shudder before he pushed Draco away.

"You stay over there," the blushing Gryffindor ordered, avoiding Draco when the blonde tried to grab his hand, "Stop distracting me so I can find the-oh! There it is!" He pushed Draco out of the way again and grabbed the emerald-encrusted silver box sitting on a nearby shelf. "This is it, right?" He held it up so that Narcissa could see.

"Yes, that's the box," Narcissa confirmed, "Come on Harry; let's go get your belongings from your relatives house so we can go home." She reached past Draco to pull Harry forward and linked arms with him, "Oh, and Harry dear?"

"Yes, Narcissa?"

"You should be extra careful when we get home. Thank you," she smiled as Harry helped her into the cart, "Draco has that look in his eyes that says he is up to no good." Harry looked over his shoulder and gulped nervously when he saw the calculating expression on the blondes face.

"I'll be careful," he assured Narcissa, "I won't turn my back on him for an instant." He offered Draco a small smile and Draco narrowed his eyes as he climbed into the cart, pulling Harry to sit on his lap again. Ravlow climbed in the front of the cart, and Naricssa sat next to him this time, with Luna in the back next to Harry and Draco. The cart began moving and Harry let out a gasp when Draco began nibbling on his earlobe.

"You were being mean back there Lion," he whispered in Harry's ear, "and I will get my revenge," he nuzzled Harry's neck gently before placing a soft kiss behind his ear, "I'll wait until you least expect it…"

"Stop it!" Harry hissed, "Your mom's right there; you want revenge? Fine; we'll have it out later, but if you don't stop messing with me right now I'll…I'll give back the ring and cancel the engagement!"

"Fine," Draco said sulkily, "but just wait until I get you alone…"

"Your face is rather flushed again Harry," Luna commented as the cart came to a stop, "The cinnadoms must be following you around; I'll get you some cinnamon to keep them away from you." Ravlow led the group back to Nagnok's office and Harry finished his business there and then exchanged some gold for Muggle money before leading everyone out into Muggle London.

************************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note**************************************************************************************

**There's another chapter down, and now Harry's going to get into the Sirius-er, I mean **_**serious**_**-stuff. As always I appreciate the reviews and look forward to hearing what you guys think; this chapter was going to deal with Harry going to the Dursely's as well, but it got a bit lengthy, so I decided to divide the chapter; the good news is that chapter twelve will be up very shortly as it's almost done! Until next time!**


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

Once in Muggle London, Harry raised his hand and signaled a cab to take them to his relative's house so that he could get his belongings.

"Number Four Privet Drive in Little Whigning," He instructed the driver, and the group piled into the back seat, even though it was slightly crowded.

"What is this thing?" Draco demanded in a whisper, "I mean, I know it's a car but…why is it so small? The driver is so close to us, and the four of us barely fit in here!"

"This is a cab," Harry replied, looking at Draco strangely, "You can hail a cab by stepping to the edge of the curb and raising your hand, or you can use a Muggle phone and arrange to be picked up at a certain time; what type of car are you used to driving in?"

"A limousine," Narcissa replied, "Whenever Lucius had to conduct business in the Muggle world we would take limousine; this is much smaller."

"And less expensive," Harry said, "A limo may be larger and give you more privacy, but a cab costs less and usually travels faster; we should be at my relatives in about twenty minutes."

Forty-five minutes later…

"You said twenty minutes," Draco grumbled as the cab drove off after dropping them off in front of Number 4 Privet Drive, "That took an hour! Honestly; we should have taken the Knight Bus!"

"It's not my fault there was an accident!" Harry protested, "As for the Knight Bus…well, if I have my way I won't be riding it again anytime soon!"

"You shouldn't take the Knight Bus," Luna agreed, "It's paid for by members of the Rotfang Conspiracy."

"When did you ride the Knight Bus?" Draco demanded, "Mother wouldn't let me ride it because she said it was too dangerous."

"She's right; it is dangerous," Harry informed him, "About a week before the beginning of Third Year my uncle's sister came for a visit and made me mad by insulting my parents-she was ten times worse than you ever were, Draco. I-"

"I always thought I did a splendid job of annoying you about your parents," Draco interrupted, "What could she have possibly said that was so much worse?"

"You basically made fun of me for having no parents," Harry told him, "Marge, on the other hand, told me that my parents were worthless drunks; granted, she got this information from Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia-they couldn't tell Marge my parents were magical, so they said that they were freaks, my dad was a jobless drunk and they died in a car crash. Marge was comparing me to a litter of puppies that she had at home, saying how she had a scrawny, runty-looking one drowned; said that if I were a dog she would have had me taken care of and that it wasn't Aunt Petunia's fault because…"he paused for a moment, closing his eyes to recall what Marge had said, "…'if there's something wrong with the bitch…'" he opened his eyes, "I don't remember her exact wording, but she basically said my mom and dad were bad people and the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Anyway, I got really pissed off and my magic got away from me; I accidentally inflated Marge, then I directed my magic to open the cupboard under the stairs where all my belongings were, ran outside, and tripped with my wand lit and somehow summoned the Knight Bus. If the ministry hadn't been so worried about Sirius escaping from Azkaban and supposedly coming to kill me I would have been in big trouble, but instead I got to spend the last week of summer in a room at the Leaky Cauldron, and Fortescue gave me free ice cream every day."

"Lucky," Draco said, "You blew up your uncle's sister and, instead of getting in trouble, you got free ice cream!"

"Yes well, from what Harry has said he probably deserved the free ice cream," Narcissa pointed out, "Having to listen to your own relatives spout off lies about your mother! I'm so sorry you had to go through that Harry dear." She gave Harry a hug which he returned gratefully.

"Thanks," he smiled as he pulled away, "but it's okay; after today I won't ever have to deal with them again, Dudley should be the only one home, and he shouldn't give us any problems because he's scared to death of adult wizards; all you have to do is pull out your wand if he bothers you and he'll run away and hide until we're gone. Ready?"

"I don't like this house," Luna said softly, "I can sense whifflehammers inside, and they're bloodthirsty; so bloodthirsty…" she trailed off and looked at Harry, "We have to hurry in here, and don't go off by yourself, promise me Harry!"

"I promise," Harry said, startled by her insistence, "We'll be in and out in just a few minutes," he looked at Narcissa, "Can you open a portal to take us out of here?"

"Of course," Narcissa said, "That will be the fastest way for us to get home. Come on Luna dear," she took the girl's hand, "We'll stick together and protect one another if it comes to it." She nodded to Harry, "Go ahead Harry; we'll be right behind you."

"Wait;" Draco grabbed Harry's hand as he was about to open the door, "I'll go first, since you don't have your wand." Harry nodded and allowed the blonde to precede him into the house. Once everyone was inside they shut the door and looked around; the living room was empty, but Harry could hear noise coming from upstairs.

"Dudley must be in his room," he said quietly, "All of my belongings are in the cupboard down here, so he probably won't even realize we're here." He walked over to the cupboard under the stairs with Draco close behind him, opened the door, and reached in to pull the string that turned the light on; the bare bulb illuminated a small storage space which contained a small cot, Harry's school trunk, and a few battered-looking toys.

"Why is there a bed in here?" Draco demanded in a whisper, "This is a closet; surely no one sleeps in here!"

"Not anymore," Harry replied, glancing over his shoulder as he grabbed the handle on his trunk, "this used to be my room before I got my Hogwarts letter; after that they moved me into the room where they put all of my cousin's broken toys."

"What?" Draco exclaimed loudly and they heard a thump from overhead, "Those Muggles made you sleep in a closet? How dare they?"

"Yes, I slept in the cupboard," Harry said, "But it was a long time ago and I'm over it; now maybe we should get out of here since your yelling probably alerted the entire neighborhood to our presence."

"I'm afraid it's too late for that," Narcissa said in a strained voice, "Hello Albus, Severus; what brings you here?" Harry spun around only to see the back of Draco's head, but by leaning to the side a bit he could see Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape standing in the Dursley's living room.

"I needed to speak to Harry," Dumbledore replied, "and since he was too busy to speak with me at the bank, I decided to come visit him at his home;" he looked over Draco's shoulders to look at Harry, "Where are your manners my dear boy? Aren't you going to offer us some refreshments; perhaps a spot of tea and a snack?"

"If you were invited guests I would gladly offer you some tea," Harry glared at him, "but I don't remember inviting you here; besides, this isn't my home any longer."

"I admit it was terribly rude of us to drop in without an invitation," Dumbledore replied, that damn twinkle still present in his blue eyes, "however we have some very important matters to discuss. As for this no longer being your home, well, where else would you live? You are my responsibility until you turn seventeen, and I've already told you why this is the safest place for you to stay."

"Really Potter," Snape sneered at him, "must you always cause trouble? I am unable to even enjoy my summer without having to deal with your acts of rebellion." Harry flushed with anger, but before he could reply Draco spoke up.

"A fat lot you know about it," he informed the potions professor, "Dumbledore there is the one causing problems; Harry is merely here to get his belongings so we can go home. There is really no need for you to be here, Godfather; we have everything under control."

"Actually," Harry spoke up, "There is one reason for him to be here." He reached into his robe pocket and pulled out an iron-bound box; "I heard my parent's wills today," he informed Snape, "and my mother left this for you; I have no idea what's inside it, but she said you would be the only one who can open it." He tried to move around Draco so he could hand the box to the dour-looking potions master, but the blonde refused to let him by. "Draco! This is ridiculous! Move out of the way!" As he was trying to get around Draco, no one noticed Luna slipping behind him and leaning down to open his trunk.

"No," Draco said, taking the box from him, "We both know how Severus feels about you, and I don't trust Dumbledore, therefore you will remain safe behind me; you don't even have your wand, remember?" Harry glared at the Slytherin but sullenly nodded his agreement and allowed Draco to take the box from him and hand it to Snape.

"We have business to attend to right now Severus," Albus said, "Why don't you let me hold onto this until the proper time comes for you to open it?" He reached out to grab the box, but Draco pulled it out of his reach.

"In her will Lily said she had something important to tell you but Dumbledore made her swear to keep it a secret as long as she lived," Draco informed his godfather, "Do you really want to trust him with something like this?" He moved to the side a little to better hide Luna from the watchful eyes of Dumbledore as she sifted quietly through Harry's trunk-most likely searching for his wand.

"I will hold onto it," Snape said, taking the box from Draco; he gave a grudging nod to Harry; "Thank you for giving this to me."

"It's what my mother wanted," Harry replied, "Maybe you should ask yourself why you didn't receive it before now; after all, _someone-_" he glared at Dumbledore-"had to have listened to he will after she died; my parents possessions should have been distributed long ago according to their wishes." He turned his attention to Dumbledore, "As for you being my guardian, Professor-as of today I am no longer considered a minor; my parents stated in their wills that I was to be considered an adult on my sixteenth birthday if both they and Sirius had passed away. You want to know where I plan to stay? With my fiancé." He took hold of Draco's hand, still making sure to stand slightly behind the older boy, and the blonde looked over his shoulder, pressing his lips to Harry's in a brief kiss.

"You approve of this, Narcissa?" Snape asked drily; "I'm surprised at you."

"Of course I approve," Narcissa replied coolly, "Harry is a fine young man; very powerful and also caring and loyal. You should come by sometime and I'll tell you what he went through over the past twenty-four hours, although that is nothing to what he has had to put up with from his relatives; did you know they used to make him sleep in a cupboard?"

"Are you really going to listen to this nonsense, Severus?" Dumbledore demanded, "Harry is a very disturbed young man and, as you yourself have pointed out numerous times, he will do anything to get attention." Snape didn't reply to Dumbledore but maintained eye-contact with Narcissa.

"I know Petunia was always jealous of Lily," he said, "She felt left out because Lily could do magic and she couldn't; you're saying she took out her jealousy of Lily on Mr. Potter?"

"Much the same as you took out your hatred of James on the boy," Narcissa said softly, "It can be hard sometimes, can't it; to separate the child from memories of their parents?"

"I will consider what you have said," Snape nodded to her, "Now, as for Potter's emancipation; you have proof of this?" Harry nodded and handed the document provided to him by Nagnok to Draco, who passed it along to Snape. "Yes, it appears everything is in order," Snape showed the document to Dumbledore, who frowned, the twinkle finally fading from his eyes, "Very well, Potter; it looks like we have no right to detain you and, as you are now an adult, you are free to go where you will. Dare I hope that your new adult status means you won't be returning to Hogwarts to torment me this year?" Harry stared at him for a moment, wide-eyed at the realization that Snape at made a joke, before replying.

"Sorry Professor," he grinned, "but I have every intention of returning to school so I can finish my education; besides Draco said he wouldn't let…now how did he word it? He didn't want to share his castle with 'some un-educated cretin'. Don't worry though; unless a miracle occurred during exams I doubt I got an OWL in potions, so at least you won't have to deal with me in class." His smile brightened as Luna slipped something into his hand; he felt the familiar smooth length of Holly beneath his fingertips and he slipped his hand in his pocket to keep it out of Dumbledore's sight. "Now, Professor Dumbledore-I have been up for a very long time, and encountered "dangers untold and hardships un-numbered", so I would very much like to go home; unless you have something important to say I will see you on the first of September. Narcissa; would you shrink my trunk for me?" Harry knew he could do it himself now, but he didn't want Dumbledore to know he had his wand yet.

"Of course," Narcissa smiled and waved her wand, shrinking Harry's trunk down to something that would fit in his pocket; he let go of Draco's hand so that he could keep his wand in his right hand and slipped the trunk in his pocket, "Are we ready to go now?"

"Yes," Harry said firmly, taking Draco's hand again and letting Narcissa and Luna leave first, "Should we take the Knight Bus?"

"Not so fast!" Dumbledore said, leaping forward to grab hold of Harry's arm; the move was unexpected enough that Harry lost his grip on Draco's hand and was pulled to the other side of the living room; "I know you are unhappy with me Harry, but I can't allow you to leave with them; everything I have done was for the greater good-I had to make you strong so that you will be able to defeat Voldemort when the time comes. Do you know how powerful he is?"

"Let me go!" Harry protested, fighting against the headmaster's hold, "If Voldemort's so dangerous why don't you defeat him?" He demanded, "Everyone knows that you're the only one he was ever afraid of! Is it because of that stupid prophesy? Or is it because you're not really as powerful as they say you are? Maybe you're just a fraud-ow!" Harry glared up at Dumbledore from where he had been pushed onto the floor.

"You don't understand," Dumbledore said coldly, all pretense of being a kindly old grandfather gone, "Voldemort put the prophesy in motion, so now it _must _be carried out!" He quoted a line from the prophesy, "'…and the Dark Lord shall mark him as his equal…'; do you think that scar and the ability to speak parseltongue are the only things he gave you? You're such a stupid child! Crucio!" Harry cried out in pain and shock as the curse hit him; it was ten times worse than when Voldemort had used the same curse on him back in the graveyard-it felt more like the brief time when Voldemort had shared his body back at the ministry.

"Protego!" Harry vaguely recognized that someone had cast a shield spell in front of him and felt relief as the pain faded, "Harry! Are you alright?" Draco helped him into a sitting position and Harry winced as a new wave of pain washed over him.

"I'll be okay," he assured the blonde, "I just have to wait for the residual-Hermione taught me that word-pain to go away. Help me stand." Draco pulled Harry to his feet and wrapped on arm around the brunette's waist to support him.

"You're all idiots!" Dumbledore said, "If the boy can't even dodge a simple curse how do you expect him to fight against Voldemort and his horcruxes?" He raised his wand to cast another spell, but stopped when Luna threw something at him. "Mushrooms?" he looked at the young blonde girl, confusion on his face, "You think to stop me with mushrooms?" Without considering the consequences, Harry pushed Draco away from him and then fired two non-verbal spells in rapid succession; the first knocked Snape backward into the wall, and the second spell caused Luna's mushroom necklace to burst into flames. As the necklace burned the mushrooms released a deadly-looking red gas into the air, and Harry fell to his knees as he accidentally inhaled some; the world spun around him for a few moments and he saw Draco's worried grey eyes above him and then everything went black.

When Harry regained consciousness, he was surprised to find himself in a familiar, bright orange room.

"Wh-what happened?" he asked, wincing at his dry throat.

"Harry!" he was engulfed in a tight hug that had him coughing as he fought for breath; "Oh no; I'm sorry Harry! I've just been so worried about you; are you okay?" He looked up into the warm brown eyes of Hermione and smiled at her reassuringly.

"Water," he rasped, and she hastened to hand him a glass of cold water, "What am I doing at the Burrow 'Mione? And where's Draco?"

"The Malfoy's brought you here," Hermione informed him, "They told Mrs. Weasley that you inhaled some poisonous fumes and that this was the only place they knew you would be safe. Then, well, I'm afraid Mrs. Weasley thought that Draco did this to you, so she sent Luna to her father's house and then called the aurors and-"

"What?" Harry exclaimed, "Where the hell are Draco and Narcissa?"

"Harry James Potter!" Molly scolded as she entered the room with Severus close behind, "You will watch your language young man! I will forgive it this once due to your delicate health-"

"Forget my health!" Harry interrupted, "I want to know where my fiancé is! How could you call the aurors without any evidence? Did they take them to Azkaban?"

"I don't know what you mean by your fiancé," Molly stated fussing over Harry and adjusting his blankets, "However the aurors did take the Malfoy's away; them bringing you here poisoned was all the proof that was needed, what with Lucius being a confirmed Death Eater and all. Now, Harry dear, let Severus take a look at you to make sure there are no lingering side-effects." She tried to move away but Harry grabbed her wrist.

"When I say my fiancé, I'm talking about Draco Malfoy," he informed her coldly, showing her the signet ring on his left hand; Molly gasped but Harry ignored it, "You had my fiancé and his mother arrested because they brought me to you for help;" he glared at Hermione, "Didn't anyone speak up for Draco and Narcissa?

"Of course I did!" Hermione said, "So did Ginny, Fred and George; even Ron defended Draco in his own way-"

"Told Mum he'd have to be completely daft to poison you and then bring you here," Ron said, entering the room along with the twins and Ginny, "She wouldn't listen though; she was right angry at us for going to the goblin kingdom and said we were obviously confounded-"

"And I stand by my opinion, which Albus supports," Molly said firmly, "If you are engaged to that…boy, then it must be some sort of spell!"

"I told you Molly, there is no spell on Potter or your children," Snape said silkily, "As for Albus…well, I wouldn't believe everything he says, after all, he is only human and therefore not infallible. Now, Mr. Potter, lie still for a moment so I can make sure the poison is out of your system." Harry glared at the room in general, but obeyed and remained silent as Snape ran a scan over him. "Hmmm…it appears the poison is gone, however…Molly, if you would kindly clear the room, I need a moment alone with Potter."

"Very well, Severus," Molly agreed, "I'll be waiting just outside if you need me; come on you lot!" She herded her children-and Hermione-out of the room and shut the door behind her.

"We have many things to discuss," Snape began, "however now is not the time for it; Narcissa and Draco are currently being held in a cell at the ministry awaiting a trial, however Dumbledore is pushing to have them Kissed unless they admit what they did to you and turn over Lucius. Don't interrupt!" He scowled at Harry when the brunette opened his mouth to argue, "Now, normally it would take a few days at least for the trial and Draco and his mother would simply remain under house arrest, but Dumbledore is using his influence to have them tried today; we have very little time to get you to the ministry, and I'm afraid Molly will hinder us because Dumbledore instructed her to keep you here out of harm's way until his return."

"Tell the twins," Harry said, "Tell Mrs. Weasley I'm fine but I just need a bit more rest, and then tell her you wanted to speak to the twins about a product of theirs that interests you; when you get them away from her tell them what's going on and they will create a diversion so that I can sneak through the Floo and go…where should I go?"

"Snape Manor," the potions master replied, "I will meet you there and then apparated us to the ministry. Your wand is on the nightstand over there, and bring your invisibility cloak as well;" Snape stood up and walked over to the door; "Oh, and Potter? You might want to put on some actual clothing underneath your robes."

Harry looked down at himself and flushed as he heard the door close; instead of the clothing Narcissa had given him for the ball he was completely naked underneath the blanket although, oddly, the bed was full of spider webs and bits of dried leaves and twigs, and his invisibility cloak and the knife Sirius had given him were also in the bed, along with his shrunken trunk. Shaking his head at the mystery of it all, Harry got out of bed and searched through Ron's clothes until he found some that were only a little too long on him. He used his wand to cut a couple inches off the bottom of the pant legs and rolled up the shirt sleeves; he looked rather sloppy, but everything would be covered by the dress robe Draco had given him, so he wasn't too worried about it. He slipped his wand in his right-hand pocket and his trunk, invisibility cloak, and knife in the other pocket and then climbed back in bed to wait for the twins' diversion. No sooner had he climbed in bed then the door opened and Molly entered.

"Severus says you'll be just fine dear," she smiled at him, "And Albus is taking care of the Malfoy's, so you just rest a bit and I'll wake you for tea, alright?"

"Okay," Harry said softly, adding a fake yawn for effect, "G'night Mrs. Weasley."

"Good-night dear," Molly replied, and he heard the soft click of the door closing as she left. A few minutes later, he heard the thundering of footsteps on the stairs and then Fred and George burst into the room.

"You have ten minutes," George informed him, "We used a new product of ours that stops time in a room for anyone not wearing one of these," he held out his hand to show Harry a gaudy, red-and-gold wristwatch.

"It's still in the trial phase so only lasts between ten and twenty minutes," Fred added, "so you'd better hurry. Do us a favor though? Leave Mum a note so she doesn't go ballistic, okay?"

"Sure," Harry replied, accepting a quill and parchment from George he wrote out a quick note;

_Dear Mrs. Weasley,_

_I'm sorry to leave like this, but I can't just stay here when my family may be in danger; I've gone to make sure they're okay, and I will let you know what happens._

_~Harry_

"How's that?" he asked the twins.

"Perfect," they chorused, and then ushered him downstairs, "Hurry now!" When they reached the living room, the trio was only slightly shocked to see Luna waiting for them.

"Daddy said I should go with you, Harry," she informed him, "During the summer I'm supposed to get to know my mother's people, and I can't do that while I'm here. So, where does Professor Snape live?" Harry shook his head but didn't bother arguing.

"Just follow me," he told her, before turning to the twins, "Thanks for all your help guys; when I get a chance I have another business proposition to discuss with you."

"No problem mate," Fred grinned.

"Always happy to help our littlest brother," George agreed, handing Harry the pot with Floo powder. Harry grabbed a handful and threw it into the fireplace.

"Snape Manor," he called, and stepped into the green flames, vanishing from sight. When the world was steady again, Harry found himself standing in a dreary drawing room, where Severus Snape was waiting for him along with-

"Wormtail!" he exclaimed, "What is he doing here?" He glared at Snape suspiciously.

"The Dark Lord sent him to help me," Snape replied, flicking his wand to bind Peter Pettigrew in magic ropes, "or, in other words, to spy on me. I know it's too late to help your obnoxious godfather, however I thought we might take him to the ministry with us and have Sirius' name cleared; after hearing what Lily had to tell me, I deeply regret listening to Dumbledore when he told me not to turn this poor excuse for a wizard over to the aurors last summer." The rat animagus was obviously under a silencing spell, because he was unable to make any protest except by glaring at Snape.

"Dumbledore made it so that Sirius couldn't get his name cleared," Harry stated, "Merlin; what else has that manipulative bas-" He fell silent as the fireplace flared up again and Snape aimed his wand. "Wait! I forgot to tell you; Luna's coming too!" He caught the ditzy blonde girl as she fell giggling out of the fireplace.

"And why, exactly, is Lovegood here?" Snape inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"The blibber-" Harry placed a hand over her mouth to prevent her from continuing.

"She's been with me since the beginning and can serve as a witness for Draco and Narcissa," he informed Snape, "Speaking of which; shouldn't we go now? Ow!" He snatched his hand away from Luna's mouth when she bit him.

"Yes, let's go," Snape replied, "Lovegood-did you pass the apparition test in the Fae Realm?"

"Yes," Luna answered, "and I'm wearing the same pair of lucky earrings that I had on when I took the test."

"Good," Snape said, "Then you will take Potter and I shall take Wormtail; apparate to the ministry atrium." Moments later Snape was gone, and the Luna grabbed Harry's arm and-before he could protest-had apparated them to the ministry. "You didn't splinch yourselves; good," Snape said, then he waved his wand and forced Pettigrew into his animagus form, then trapped him inside the iron-bound box that Harry had given him earlier. "Now, we must hurry to the court room; I checked earlier and Dumbledore called in the full Wizengamot for this." He turned and entered the ministry with his robes billowing out behind him and Harry and Luna close on his heels.

The lift ride down to the floor where the hearing was being held seemed to last an eternity, but they finally reached the proper floor and rushed into the courtroom.

"Very well, in light of the testimony of Albus Dumbledore I-" Rufus Scrimegour, the Minister of Magic was interrupted by the doors slamming open.

"Wait!" Snape said, "Harry Potter is here, and he would like to address this court regarding the events that happened today." Everyone in the courtroom stared at the unlikely trio for a moment, and then Scrimegour collected himself.

"Mr. Potter," he nodded a greeting, "Of course, as the injured it is your right to speak at this hearing. Please step forward and give your testimony." He waited until Harry stood in front of him and began his questioning; "Now, according to Albus Dumbledore, he witnessed Draco and Narcissa Malfoy poison you with a very rare mushroom-"

"Excuse me," Harry interrupted as politely as possible, "if you have a pensieve, I would like to allow you to view my memory of what happened a few hours ago."

"I object," Dumbledore spoke up before anyone else could reply, "Mr. Potter is underage, and therefore does not have the right to show us his memory; as his legal guardian-"

"I was emancipated today, in accordance with my parents will," Harry interrupted, handing Scrimgeour the document from Gringotts, "so I don't need Dumbledore's permission for anything." He looked over his shoulder to smile reassuringly at Draco, who was sitting in the same chair Harry had occupied just one year ago; this time, however, the chains were being used to hold the blonde in place. "Also, Minister, I would appreciate it if you could have the chains release Draco; I know he's here under suspicion, but he's still a classmate of mine and only sixteen-I doubt he has a chance to escape from the courtroom, especially since I'm sure you have his wand."

"That seems fair," Scrimegour agreed, and the manacles dropped away from Draco, "These documents also prove to be authentic, so we shall provide a pensieve so that we may review the events that happened earlier this morning; in fact, Albus Dumbledore has accused Draco Malfoy of kidnapping you and placing you under a spell, so perhaps memories of the past twenty-four hours would be useful?"

"Okay," Harry agreed, and they waited a moment for the pensieve to be brought in. Percy Weasley, who happened to be the courtroom aide, set the stone basin in front of Harry and gave him a guarded nod, which Harry responded to with a smile.

Harry placed his wand to his temple and concentrated on memories of the past twenty-four hours, starting with his wish to have his cousin taken by the goblin king, and ending with the scene at his relatives house that morning; he edited out some of his memories-such as the more intense kisses between himself and Draco, and the information about Sirius-but it still took a good few hours for the Wizengamot to review his memories.

When they had finished reviewing the memories the members of the Wizengamot looked at Dumbledore in shock; the so-called "leader of the light" had used an Unforgivable against Harry Potter, the boy-who-lived!

"I move that all charges against Draco Malfoy and Narcissa Malfoy neé Black be dropped," Rufus Scrimgour was the first person to find his voice, "All those in favor?" The majority of the people in the stands raised their hands; when it was done only five people were opposed, "Draco Malfoy, I declare you innocent of all charges; Mr. Weasley-please return to Mr. Malfoy his wand, and have Narcissa Malfoy brought in and given back her wand as well."

"Yes sir," Percy bowed and immediately handed Draco his wand; once he had it in hand Draco looked at Harry and ran to the brunette, hugging him tightly.

"You don't know how glad I was to see you," Draco whispered, "When you walked in with Severus, I just knew we were saved!" He kissed Harry fiercely on the mouth before pulling back slightly, eyes burning with emotion, "I love you, Harry Potter."

"I love you too, Draco Malfoy," Harry replied, burying his face in the blonde's neck, "When Snape told me that Dumbledore was pushing for the Kiss…I probably would have joined up with Voldemort if it would save you."

"I hate to interrupt," Scrimegour said apologetically, "However there is still the matter of Albus Dumbledore to be settled; would you like to press charges against him?"

"Aaah!" At that moment Dumbledore let out a terrible cry and crumpled to the floor; seconds later, a black mist rose from his body and a pair of glowing red eyes flashed at them once before the mist vanished.

"What was that?" a frightened voice from the stands demanded, "It looked like Dumbledore was possessed!" Dumbledore stirred and moaned softly before raising his head to look at the members of the Wizengamot.

"I'm free," he said quietly, "I'm so sorry for what I've done; after the battle at the ministry I was possessed by a portion of Voldemort's soul; I'm not sure what drove him away, but I'm finally myself again." He rose to his feet unsteadily and addressed Amelia Bones, the head of Magical Law Enforcement. "Madame Bones, I am willing to accept punishment for my behavior, however I do request that you keep in mind the fact that I have been possessed; if you would like, I can provide you with a pensieve memory of the battle." Madame Bones looked at the minister for a moment before responding.

"Very well, Albus;" she nodded, "We shall withhold judgment until we have had a chance to review your memories; please…" Harry tuned out of the conversation as he saw Narcissa enter the courtroom; Harry had never seen anyone hasten slowly before, but somehow the stately blonde managed, and she engulfed Harry and Draco in a tight hug.

"Are you alright, Dragon?" when Draco nodded she turned to Harry, "And you Harry; are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Harry replied, "Thankfully Dumbledore still trusts Snape-or at least he did-and he was able to tell me what happened when he checked me over at the Weasley's. Unfortunately, Dumbledore is pretending that he was possessed, so it looks as if he will get out of this mess scot-free." He scowled angrily at the devious headmaster, until Draco drew his attention back to him by squeezing his hand.

"It's just until you get the rest of your financial report from Gringotts," the blonde reminded him, "After you get all the information from them, you will be able to press charges against Dumbledore for going against your parents' wishes. Unless you wish to fight against this now?"

"No," Harry shook his head, "I think I would rather go home; I would say we should stop back by the Weasley's before we leave the realm, but I'm afraid Mrs. Weasley would just call the aurors on you again."

"Perhaps it would be better to meet up with the Weasley's at a later time," Narcissa suggested, "maybe in a neutral setting." She gave Harry a small smile and then turned to Luna, holding a hand out to the blonde girl, "I should be furious at you for bringing that necklace after I told you to leave it behind, but I must say it came in useful; next time, however, perhaps you could give me enough advanced notice so that I can bring an antidote for any poisonous items you feel might be needful?"

"I'll ask the humdingers," Luna said non-commitally, "They're the ones that tell me what could be useful; most people find them annoying, but I've discovered that you can bribe them with sweets and they won't play as many tricks on you."

"That's nice dear," Narcissa smiled, then she raised her hand to get the minister's attention.

"-so I feel that he should be under watch until such time as-sorry; yes, Mrs. Malfoy?" Scrimegour stopped in the middle of what he was saying and turned his attention to Narcissa.

"Thank you, Minister," Narcissa smiled at him, "May we be permitted to leave now? Harry has decided not to press charges at this time, and he is still feeling somewhat ill from inhaling those toxic fumes earlier today."

"Of course," Scrimegour nodded, "You and your son are free to go; if we have any further questions we will send you an owl." Narcissa bowed slightly, Harry and Draco following her lead, and then took Luna's hand-the flighty blonde had started humming and twirling around in circles-and led the group over to the door; she stopped for a moment to address Severus; "Severus, will you be accompanying us today? I'm sure we have much to discuss?"

"Not at the moment," Snape replied, glancing at Dumbledore, who was still appealing to the Wizengamot, "I have things I must attend to first-" he looked at Harry and tapped the iron-bound box, "-but I will send you an owl when I am free; it will be either later today or sometime tomorrow."

"Very well," Narcissa kissed his cheek, "You know you are welcome at any time. Do you mind if we apparated to your home so that we may open a portal back to the realm?"

"I'm afraid you will have to floo," Snape replied, "I don't have Potter or Lovegood keyed into the wards, but you are welcome to use my home to open a portal."

"Thank you," Narcissa nodded, "Take care, Severus." She continued out of the courtroom with Luna in tow and Harry and Draco following behind. Once out of the courtroom, the group rode the lift up to the atrium and Narcissa led them to a long row of fireplaces; one-by-one they took a handful of floo powder and tossed it in the flames, calling out Snape Manor. At Snape's house Narcissa opened a portal and they stepped through it together, each of them heaving a sigh of relief at finally being home.

**********************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note****************************************************************************************

**Told you this one was about done! Didn't think I'd actually finish it tonight, but I found that the ending of this chapter came easily; except for maybe the last paragraph or so-in my haste to get them out of the wizarding world I may have rushed it a bit, so sorry if it's not up to standard. Please review and I will update again ASAP!**


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

******This chapter contains a steamy scene further on down, so you have been warned!*****

"I'm so glad we're finally back!" Harry exclaimed, slumping down onto a couch as soon as they stepped out of the portal and into the sitting room, "I feel exhausted!" Narcissa smiled sympathetically and called a goblin to bring them all some tea as she and Luna took chairs across from Harry.

"It's no wonder," Draco drawled, sitting next to Harry and maneuvering them until Harry's head lay in his lap so he could run his fingers through the dark tresses, "You went through the labyrinth, thought you won, discovered you lost, got engaged;" he paused to press a kiss to Harry's forehead, "Heard your parents and Sirius's will, got crucio'ed, inhaled toxic fumes from a poisonous mushroom, rescued Mother and me-thank you again, by the way- and all within twenty-four hours."

"When you put it that way, I'm surprised I'm still conscious," Harry said drily, "Especially since the only thing I've eaten since yesterday afternoon was that little snack we had before leaving and a few bites of that enchanted peach Luna gave me."

"What?" Narcissa demanded, "You haven't eaten anything? I know you're tired, but I think a little lunch is in order first, and then we can all take a nap until dinner time; how does that sound?"

"Sounds wonderful," Harry said gratefully, closing his eyes to enjoy the sensation of Draco's fingers combing through his hair, "Lunch and a nap actually sound perfect right about now."

"Excellent," Narcissa said, "We'll go to the informal dining room; it's just down the hall. Come along Luna; we'll make sure the goblins have everything ready, and Draco-you help Harry."

"Yes Mother," Draco agreed, helping his fiancé sit up as Narcissa and Luna left the room, "Think you can still walk?" he teased, and Harry gave him a half-hearted glare.

"I'm tired and hungry, not invalid," he said, getting to his feet and walking to the door, he paused and looked over his shoulder, "You coming?" Draco joined him and linked their arms together as he led Harry down the hallway to the dining room, where Narcissa and Luna were waiting for them.

"There you are boys," Narcissa smiled, "Luna and I decided it would be nice to have some breakfast instead of lunch; sit down and we'll get started."

The dining room table was big enough to sit eight people, and carved from a dark cherry wood; the top of the table was laden with food: pancakes and waffles topped with every kind of berry imaginable, French toast, back, sausage, hash browns, eggs, toast , muffins, milk and five different times of juice, plus bowls of fresh fruit. The group sat down and took their time enjoying the late breakfast, talking very little and sharing a companionable silence. When they had finished eating they all went back to the small sitting room again.

"I know you're tired," Narcissa began, "but I wanted to discuss Sirius with you for just a moment."

"Okay," Harry agreed, "When can we do the ritual?" He leaned up against Draco's side as the blonde once again joined him on the loveseat.

"It has to be on one of the four days that represent the changing of seasons," she informed him, "Those are the spring and autumn equinoxes and the summer and winter solstices."

"The Summer Solstice just passed in June," Luna spoke up, "I remember because the Blibbering Humdingers were very active that night; Daddy was visiting here and he stayed up all night so he could track their activity and they led him to the breeding grounds of a herd of crumple horned snoracks' but they had moved on."

"If the Summer Solstice has just passed, then the next time we can hold the ritual would be the Autumn Equinox?" Harry questioned and Narcissa nodded, "When is the equinox?"

"It falls on September 23rd this year," Narcissa informed him, "We have a large celebration to welcome the change in seasons, but it will not be until that evening; I will check with our astronomer to see what the exact time of the equinox will be and we will have the ceremony then."

"Is there anything I need to do to prepare?" Harry asked and Narcissa shook her head.

"No, the preparation of the ritual will have to be done by me, and I may see if Severus will help," she said, "You and Draco will be the ones to actually make the exchange; we can go over the details at a later date though, as I need to find the book and read up on the ritual again. Now, as today is your Birthday, did you have any plans, or would you like to invite some of your friends here?"

"I don't have any plans really," Harry replied, "I was originally supposed to go on a cruise with the Weasley's and Hermione, but Dumbledore and my relatives forbade me from going, and I guess they left the cruise anyway since they were at the Burrow."

"Wizarding cruises allow you to apparate and disapparate as needed," Narcissa said, "I can contact Molly to see if they plan on returning to the cruise and, if so, we can join them if you like; now that you have been declared an adult no one can stop you from going now." She paused thoughtfully for a moment before adding, "Well, except Draco-since you lost the labyrinth challenge to him he _could _stop you from going, but I doubt he'd want to start a huge fight on the first day of your engagement."

"I don't know Mother," Draco drawled, wrapping an arm around Harry's waist, "we've spent most of the last six years fighting, and I'm not sure it would be a good idea to just stop completely."

"Oh, don't worry Dray;" Harry said sweetly, "I'm sure we'll find plenty of reasons to fight; when you wake up from a magic-induced coma after I return from the cruise you tried to ban me from going on."

"I never said I would try to stop you from going," Draco protested, "I was merely pointing out the fact that this wouldn't be our first big fight; although Mother is correct that I wouldn't want to start the fight today, however I would like to go on the cruise with you."

"Excellent," Narcissa smiled, "I will contact Molly to set everything up and see if the cruise has any extra cabins available; if they do Luna can stay with me, and then you and Draco can share a cabin if you like. Aside from the Weasley's and Hermione, is there anyone else you would like to join us on the cruise?"

"Neville, if his Gran will let him come," Harry said, "His Gran doesn't let him do much, but maybe she can be convinced to let him come with us."

"Leave Augusts to me," Narcissa reassured him, "If everything goes according to plan we should be on the cruise either tomorrow or the day after." At that moment a goblin entered and bowed to Narcissa.

"Majesty, Mr. Severus is here to see you," the goblin said, "He says he would also like a word with young Lord Harry."

"Please send him in," Narcissa said.

"Why did that goblin call me "Lord" Harry?" Harry asked her, "I'm not a lord…am I?"

"Actually you are," Draco replied, "As a descendant of the Peverell family, one of the oldest pureblood family's, you are a lord."

"It's also been said that the Potter's were distantly related to the Tudors through Queen Elizabeth I," everyone looked up as Severus entered, "They claim she had an illegitimate daughter that was adopted into the Prewett family and later wed into the Potter family; of course it's never been proven, but then no one has ever had the tools to properly look into it before."

"Hello Severus," Narcissa stood up to greet him with a kiss before gesturing him to an empty chair, "I'm glad to see you, although I wasn't expecting you so early; would you like some tea or a snack?"

"No thank you Narcissa," Severus gave her a small smile, "I just wanted to discuss a few things with you, but first I have information for Mr. Potter."

"Is it taken care of, Professor Snape?" Harry asked eagerly, "Has Sirius' name been cleared?"

"It has, Mr. Potter," Severus confirmed, "The name of Sirius Black has finally been cleared, and Peter Pettigrew is set to receive the Kiss before the end of the day. Also, Potter, we are not in school right now and, as you are engaged to my godson, we are practically family, so you may call me Severus-but only in private."

"Yes sir," Harry smiled, "But only if you'll stop calling me Mr. Potter all the time; I do have a first name, you know."

"I know that very well, Harry," Severus scowled, but there was a tiny glint of amusement in his dark eyes, "You're as bad as Draco; impertinent brat."

"I resent that!" Draco protested as Harry laughed at him, "You're so mean, Uncle Sev! And as for you!" He turned to face Harry who was still grinning broadly, "You're already in trouble from your behavior at the bank; you might want to stop antagonizing me." He narrowed his eyes at the grinning brunette.

"As you've pointed out before, we have spent years antagonizing each other," Harry responded, "and yet you still proposed to me; you must enjoy it." He gave Draco a kiss on the cheek before turning his attention back to Severus, "Was there anything else you wanted to talk to me about? I'm exhausted from the past couple of days, and I feel like I'm about to drop."

"There was one other thing," Severus began hesitantly, "The box Lily left me…she left a voice message for me, as well as documents to prove that her words were true and, well, Dumbledore has done a lot of things that even I never guessed at." He paused for a moment and Harry noticed that Severus Snape actually appeared nervous. "It would seem," the potions master continued, "that Draco isn't the only connection between us; you mother and your Aunt Petunia were actually my sisters."

"What?" Everyone in the room exclaimed-with the exception of Luna, who was-once again-humming to herself.

"My Mum…was your sister?" Harry questioned, "And Petunia? But…how? Petunia can't even do magic, she thinks we're freaks!"

"I know," Severus said quietly, "but from what Lily told me-and I had the goblins verify this-Dumbledore kidnapped them, changed our parents' memories, and placed Lily and Petunia with a muggle family. Petunia was a year older than Lily and I, and she was born a squib, which made my father happy since my father was a muggle and hated all magic unless it was useful to him; Lily is actually my twin sister, and it was about six months after we were born that Dumbledore took my sisters from us." Severus pulled a small black globe from his robe pocket and held it up, "This is a memory sphere which Lily somehow managed to make Dumbledore hand over; I would like for you to see the memories it has recorded." Harry nodded and held tight to Draco's hand as Severus activated the sphere with the password "Lily Flower" and the group found themselves in an unfamiliar setting as the sitting room disappeared (although, oddly enough, they were still sitting on the couches and chairs.)

The group was in a dark living room, with a little blonde-haired girl playing quietly in a corner, while a set of dark-haired babies babbled to each other in a crib that was set out of the way; these were obviously Petunia, Severus, and Lily as babies-the twins were approximately one year while Petunia looked to be about two. Sitting in a worn armchair by the fireplace was a young woman with brunette hair, who was obviously Eileen Prince; although Eileen was young she was careworn and her face was lined while her hair had a few grey streaks, and sitting across from her was a young Albus Dumbledore.

"I love all of my children," Eileen was saying quietly, "but Tobias never wanted girls, and I'm afraid of what he'll do to Petunia and Lily when they are older; you know, of course how I got into this mess. Lily should be alright Albus; she and Severus are already showing signs of magic, so she'll be safe at Hogwarts when she gets to that age, Petunia though…"Eileen trailed off.

"Still no sign of magic, my Dear?" Dumbledore asked kindly, and Eileen shook her head.

"I'm afraid she's a squib," she admitted, glancing at her eldest child, "She'll be three in a few months, and if she doesn't show any magical talent she will be stuck here; you must help me Albus!" Eileen looked at Dumbledore with tears in her eyes, "I need my children to be safe, please!"

"What would you do to make them safe?" Albus questioned, and Harry noticed a calculating gleam behind the usual twinkle in his eyes, "What would you sacrifice?"

"Anything!" Eileen said, grasping the wizard's hands, "Does this mean you'll help me Albus? You'll save my children?" She gazed at him hopefully and Dumbledore gave her a gentle smile.

"You have my word that I will make sure Lily and Petunia never have to worry about being hurt by their father," Dumbledore said and then pulled out his wand. Before Eileen had a chance to react, he said "Obliviate!" and Eileen's face went blank. "You will remember nothing of my visit," he said softly, "You will go upstairs and take a nap, and when you awaken you will have no memories of Petunia or Lily; Severus is your only child-you will resent him for making Tobias hate you and your magic, and also because you can never have any more children. You will put this potion," he set out a vial of blue liquid on the table; "in your husband's drink tonight and neither of you will recall having daughters. Now, go upstairs and rest." Eileen obeyed in her trance-like state and soon vanished up the stairs, leaving Dumbledore free to turn his attention to the children.

"Where Mummy go?" Petunia demanded, walking over to Dumbledore and glaring, "Why you make her leave us? Babies need Mummy or Daddy will hurt babies."

"Don't worry about it Petunia," Dumbledore smiled, "Your Mummy just needed to rest for a bit. How would you and Lily like to go on a trip with me, hmm? I know a nice family who would love to meet a beautiful childlike yourself." Petunia frowned and took a step back from the man.

"What about Sev'rus?" She asked, "No leave Sev'rus by 'self!"

"He'll be just fine," Dumbledore assured her, "I can only take two people with me, so I will bring you and Lily, and I'll take Severus up to your mother's room, okay?" Petunia thought for a moment before giving a hesitant nod. "Wonderful!" Dumbledore beamed, walking over to the crib. He cast a quiet sleeping spell over Severus before picking Lily up out of the crib and then the crib was gone with a wave of his hand. "There; now Severus will rest with your Mother, and we'll go down the road to visit my friends, okay? Take my hand Petunia." The little blonde girl obeyed and allowed Dumbledore to lead her out of the house and down the road; they crossed through a small park and into a nice-looking neighborhood with neat houses where the people outside smiled and waved, not even making a comment about Dumbledore's strange attire. The came to a house at the end of the lane that was painted white with light blue trim and a blue door; Dumbledore knocked and the door was opened by a young, brightly smiling woman with auburn hair.

"Hello, how can I help you?" the woman asked politely.

"Are you Mrs. Evans?" Dumbledore asked and the woman nodded, "Wonderful! My name is Albus Dumbledore, and I come from the orphanage; I understand you and your husband have been looking to adopt!"

"Oh, yes!" Mrs. Evans cried, stepping back and opening the door wider, "Please, come in Mr. Dumbledore, and have a seat while I go fetch Timothy."

"Please, call me Albus," he smiled sitting on the couch holding Lily in his lap with Petunia sitting quietly beside him.

"Then you must call me Angie," the woman returned, "It's Evangelina, really, but that just feels like such an old name." She let out a small laugh before turning to leave the room, "I'll just go find the husband of mine, and then I'll get us some tea." Dumbledore nodded his understanding and smiled as Angie left the room.

"Sir," Petunia tugged on Dumbledore's sleeve, "What's 'dopting?" Dumbledore smiled and placed a hand on her head before answering.

"Adopting is taking care of someone else's children because the real parent's aren't able to," he replied, "Petunia, your mother told me she can't take care of you, and she asked me to find someone to keep you safe; that's why we're here-the Evans will be your new family."

"No!" Petunia cried, startling Lily into crying as well, "Don't wanna stay here! Take me back to Mummy! Don't want new Mummy!"

"Now, now; what's all this fuss about?" Petunia looked up and saw a kindly young man with brown hair standing in the doorway; without a second thought she ran to him and threw her arms around his legs.

"Please don't!" she sobbed, "Want to go back to Mummy! No stay here! Need Mummy and Sev'rus!"

"Hush child," the man soothed her, "Of course we wouldn't want to take you from your Mother and…Sev'rus?"

"Severus," Dumbledore supplied, "That's her little brother, Lily's twin. The little girl clinging to you is Petunia, and my name is Albus."

"I'm Timothy," the man said, "Now, would you kindly explain to me what is going on Albus? Why is this little girl, Petunia, saying that you took her from her family." Albus sighed and put a sorrowful expression on his face; Harry recognized the expression from his many meetings with the headmaster and growled, only relaxing slightly when Draco pressed him more firmly to his side.

"Hush," Draco whispered, "Don't worry, Lion; Dumbledore will get his, just wait." He pressed a soft kiss to Harry's cheek and the brunette nodded, allowing himself to be pulled into his fiancé's lap where Draco wrapped his arms around him comfortingly before turning his attention back to the scene in front of him; Angie had returned to the room and was trying to help her husband calm the sobbing Petunia.

"Perhaps the girls should go into another room, or outside with Angie," Dumbledore suggested, "what I'm about to tell you would only upset poor Petunia."

"I'll take them in the kitchen with me," Angie volunteered, taking Petunia's hand, "Come on Sweetie; why don't you and Lily come help me make some cookies, and you can tell me all about your Mum." Petunia clung to Angie's hand as the young woman collected Lily from Dumbledore and then the trio went into the kitchen.

"Now, tell me what's going on," Timothy leveled a steely gaze at Dumbledore, "You told Angie that you're from the orphanage, but I don't believe that for an instant."

"You're correct," Dumbledore said quietly, picking up a cup of tea that Angie had brought in; he poured some potion into it unseen and then handed it to Timothy, who sipped it without hesitation, "but I will tell you what you need to know, if you'll give me a moment to collect my thoughts." He closed his eyes for a moment, and Timothy took another drink of his tea; suddenly his eyes glazed over and the tea cup slipped out of his hands. The tinkle of breaking glass caused Dumbledore to open his eyes and smile at the man in front of him. "Excellent; when I leave today you will have no memory of me being here; Lily and Petunia are your daughters; Petunia was born November 10, 1958, and Lily was born January 30, 1960. You and Evangelina are their biological parents, and will keep them away from the family on Spinner's End because they are a bad influence. Also, your wife will go by Evangelina instead of Angie because it is much classier. Call Angie to bring the girls in, and have her drink a cup of tea."

"Angie!" Timothy called, "Can you bring the girls back, please?" Angie appeared a few minutes later with a giggling Lily and a quiet-but no longer sobbing-Petunia.

"What is it Timothy?" Angie asked, sitting by her husband and pulling both girls into her lap; Dumbledore cast a nonverbal sleeping spell on Petunia as Timothy handed his wife a cup of the tea Dumbledore had spiked; soon she too dropped her teacup, and Dumbledore gave her the same story as Timothy. When that was done, he whispered memory charm over Petunia, erasing all memories of her biological family, but he neglected to do the same for Lily, probably figuring she would be too young to remember anything from her former life. When that was done, Dumbledore placed a sleeping charm on the whole family and cast a glamour over Lily, turning her fine, black hair into thick auburn locks, and then proceeded to make some changes to the house. First, he went upstairs and turned one of the extra bedrooms into a nursery for the girls, with a crib for Lily and a child's bed for Petunia. Then, he magically created an abundance of photos which he had altered from some that he stole from Eileen, and finally levitated the family upstairs before leaving the house.

Dumbledore apparated back over to the house on Spinner's End and, once inside, erased all evidence of the two little girls who had formerly lived there. With a wave of his hand the baby crib appeared back downstairs and Dumbledore saw that baby Severus was awake and glaring at him accusingly.

"You suspect something of what I've done, don't you?" Dumbledore chuckled, "Ah well, no matter; in a few weeks you will have forgotten all about poor Lily. I'm afraid you are in for a rough childhood, my boy, but don't worry; I will be there for you to turn to. Everything I do is for the greater good, and one day you shall act as my right-hand man, but I'm afraid you'll have to prove yourself through fire first. Well, Severus my boy, I must be going." He smiled at the frowning baby once more before apparating out of the house, and then the scene went dark.

"That…bastard!" Harry seethed as the sitting room reappeared around them, "He had no right to do that!"

"I quite agree," Severus said, "but, unfortunately, it is too late to do anything about it now. Potter, Harry, I know I haven't been exactly fair to you, taking my anger at your father out on you, but I was wondering if you would be willing to start over?"

"Of course," Harry replied, smiling, "Neither of us has much family, and I've always felt that family was important; everybody always tells me stories of my father-maybe you can tell me about my mother?"

"I'd enjoy that," Severus said, "Dumbledore will not be happy about this turn of events; he may fire me when he finds out…"

"Don't tell him then," Draco suggested, "Pretend that you still hate Harry and only tolerate him for my sake; we're going to need you at school this year, I just know it."

"Oh, have the blibbering humdingers been talking to you as well?" Luna asked him, "They have been very forthcoming recently; something has made them happy."

"Riiiight," Draco said, "Anyway, Harry has already drawn a line between him and Dumbledore, and I obviously stand with him, so we will need support from a teacher we can trust."

"Very well," Severus nodded, "I will try not to alienate Dumbledore just yet however, if I am going to remain the potions teacher I expect my nephew to be in the class _and _do well in it; I was able to get a peek at your Potions OWL and you somehow managed to get an O, just barely-this year you _will_ do better, am I clear?"

"Yes," Harry sighed, "I'll try to do better." He let out a yawn and leaned back into Draco's embrace, "It'll have to wait 'til I'm more awake though, Uncle Sev."

"Impertinent," Severus glared at him, "You will stop calling me Sev, both of you!" He glared at the two boys on the couch before turning his gaze to Narcissa and Luna, "and you two will not call me Sev either!"

"Of course not," Narcissa replied calmly, "Okay, why don't you three head up to bed? If you're not downstairs in time for supper I'll send a goblin to come fetch you, and I'll contact Molly before I take my own nap."

"That sounds great Narcissa," Harry smiled as he got to his feet, Draco at his side; the boys walked over to Narcissa and each kissed her cheek before heading upstairs with Luna. Luna's rooms were close to the stairs, so she gave the boys a kiss on the cheek and skipped off into her room humming happily, and then Harry and Draco finally made it to Draco's room-their room.

"I have some pajamas you can borrow if needed," Draco offered his fiancé.

"That's okay," Harry replied, taking his trunk out of his robe and unshrinking it, "I have some clothes in here that Hermione and Ginny helped me pick out." He dug through the trunk until he pulled out a pair of black silk boxer shorts and an emerald green silk tee. "Do you mind if I take a shower?"

"Of course not," Draco said, "The bathroom is through there; try not to take too long though, because I want a shower before bed also." "Okay," Harry agreed, giving Draco a peck on the lips as he walked by him, "I'll be quick about it."

Draco stood watching as the brunette entered the bathroom and shut the door before he went over to his wardrobe and got out his own pajamas, which consisted of black silk pajama pants and a silver tank top. As he closed the wardrobe he heard a tapping on the window and looked up to see Harry's owl Hedwig, accompanied by a regular brown barn owl and a tan and black long eared owl; all three of them were carrying packages, so he quickly opened the window to let them in. Hedwig and the barn owl dropped their packages off on the bed, but the long eared owl flew over to the desk and looked at Draco expectantly, so he walked over and relieved it of the two packages it was carrying; one of them was wrapped in red paper with a gold bow, while the other was wrapped in black and silver paper and addressed to Draco. He tossed the red package on the bed and examined the package with his name on it; before opening the package he gave all of the owls' treats and they flew off out the window.

Draco turned the package over in his hands-it wasn't very big-and sat down on the edge of his desk to open it. Inside was a silver box which expanded slightly and a piece of parchment fluttered to the desk with the words "Read Me First!" in big red letters; upon opening it, he found it was from the Weasley twins.

_Dear Malfoy, Draco:_

_First off, congratulations on your engagement; second the warning: if you do anything to hurt our little brother, you will die a slow and painful death. Harry has been a little brother to us ever since we helped him load his trunk onto the Hogwarts Express in his first year, and we would do anything to protect him. That being said, from what we've seen today and what Luna and Neville have told us, you make Harry happier than we've ever seen him and so, on this, the day of our brother's birth, we give you a gift that is a joint present for both you and Harry. We know that your relationship is just starting, so some of these products may be out of your comfort level right now, but just enjoy whatever strikes your interest. We have been considering starting an adult line of novelty items, and we'd like for you two to test them out for us and give us your opinion. Don't worry, these are not pranks! So, enjoy and let us know if you have any ideas for future products that you would like to see._

_ Sincerely,_

_ Fred and George Weasley (AKA the New Marauder's)_

Draco finished reading the letter and set it aside to open the box; once the lid was removed he looked at the items inside and grinned. Despite popular opinion, Draco wasn't actually experienced in sexual matters; he'd kissed Pansy Parkinson and Daphne Greengrass and fooled around a little bit with Blaise back in fourth year when they were both experimenting with their sexuality (Blaise had ultimately decided he preferred girls) but he had never had sex. The items the twins gave them would definitely be useful; there was a multitude of different flavored lubricants as well as an assortment of other items that-while interesting-Draco knew neither he nor Harry were ready to try them out yet. Although…he pulled out a piece of green leather that had a name tag reading "Property of Draco Malfoy" and set it to the side; maybe he could convince Harry…

Speaking of which, Draco looked at the clock on his desk and saw that Harry had been in the shower for about twenty minutes and the water was still going. With a wicked smiled Draco grabbed his pajamas from where he had dropped them and, making as little sound as possible, entered the bathroom, where he could see Harry's silhouette in the shower. He silently closed the door behind him, and then crept closer to the shower….

Harry climbed into the shower and sighed happily as the hot water washed over him; it had been such a long, trying day and he was so exhausted! He still couldn't believe he was engaged to Draco Malfoy, his childhood nemesis and the heir to the throne of Terre de Espérer Éternelle, not to mention he became a legal adult in the wizarding world, found out that Snape, his most hated teacher was his uncle, and there was the little incident with the poisonous mushroom…all-in-all it had been a very long day, and he wasn't quite sure what to think about all the recent changes in his life. Harry closed his eyes and leaned his head back, reaching out blindly for the body wash he had seen earlier; as his hand closed around the bottle he felt another hand on top of his and then there was a whisper in his ear; "Need some help Harry?" Harry's eyes snapped open and he dropped the bottle as he spun around to face Draco.

"Draco! What are you doing?" he demanded nervously, blushing as he realized that they were both completely naked; he forced himself to maintain eye contact even as he felt his cheeks burning.

"I told you not to take too long," Draco smirked, "It's been about twenty minutes, and I was getting worried, so I thought I'd give you a helping hand." He raised his hand to cup Harry's face and leaned down to place a gentle kiss on his lips; when he pulled away he locked gazes with Harry and said, "If it really bothers you I'll leave; I won't do anything you aren't ready for." Harry bit his lip uncertainly for a moment before smiling and leaning forward to brush his lips against Draco's once again.

"It's okay," he whispered, "You can stay, it's just…I've never done anything like this before." His emerald eyes were full of uncertainty, so Draco leaned in to kiss him again, murmuring, "Don't worry, and just let me take care of you." He nibbled at Harry's bottom lip and the brunette granted him entrance, tangling his hands in soft platinum locks as he pulled Draco completely under the spray of hot water. Harry gave a small gasp when he felt Draco's hard length against his thigh and tried to back away, but Draco simply wrapped one arm around his waist and pulled him closer, sucking softly on the Gryffindor's tongue and drawing a moan from him. Draco slowly maneuvered them until Harry's back was against the tiled shower wall and trailed kisses across his cheek and down to whisper in his ear.

"I can't believe you're finally mine," Draco licked the shell of his ear, "I've wanted this for so long Harry, my Lion." He nibbled gently on Harry's earlobe before moving further down and placing little biting kisses down the smooth column of the brunette's neck, leaving tiny red marks in his wake as he made his way down to Harry's collar bone. He licked small circles at the juncture between neck and shoulder before pressing his teeth against Harry's skin and sucking, drawing a moan out of the younger boy. Draco adjusted their position so that his knee was between Harry's legs, pressing against the other boy's hardened member as he slid his hands up Harry's water-slicked skin to feel the muscles on his chest before finding Harry's nipples and pinching them hard enough to make Harry whimper; the brunette bucked forward and then gasped again as he rubbed his erection against Draco's knee.

"Oh Merlin, Draco!" Harry gasped, clinging tighter to the platinum locks; Draco responded by biting down on Harry's sensitive skin before lifting his head and smirking at the purple bruise left behind.

"Do you like that, Lion?" Draco asked, "Mmm, you taste so sweet, like candy." He licked down Harry's neck and the brunette squirmed, giggling softly at the sensation. One of Draco's hands trailed a line back down Harry's chest to wrap around his hard cock, and Draco looked him in the eyes asking, "Is this okay?"

"Yes!" Harry gasped out, bucking into Draco's grip, "Merlin, please don't stop!" He moaned softly as Draco pumped his hand slowly up and down his cock, squeezing slightly.

"Touch me Harry," Draco commanded, "I want to feel your hand on me." Hesitantly Harry dropped one hand from Draco's hair and grasped the blonde's cock instead, doing his best to copy Draco's movements on his own cock. It seemed he was doing something right, because he saw Draco close his eyes and lean his head back hissing, "Yesss, just like that Harry Luv; oh it feels so good." Feeling encouraged Harry sped up his movements until Draco was thrusting into his hand; Harry realized that Draco's hand on his own cock had slowed down, and he whimpered in displeasure. "Don't stop Harry," Draco whispered, "Oh Merlin, don't stop! I'm gonna come!" Draco let out a last gasp of "Harry!" and then he was spilling his seed over Harry's hand and he collapsed forward, crushing Harry's body between his own and the wall. Draco continued to move his hand on Harry's cock in a slow, teasing pace as he got his breathing back under control.

"Draaacooo!" Harry whined, "Please!" Draco placed a kiss on Harry's shoulder and then straightened up to look the dark-haired boy in the eyes.

"Remember the bank Harry?" he asked, "I told you that I would have my revenge on you when we got home, and I always keep to my word." With a whispered, wandless spell Harry found his hands trapped above his head and he gaped at the Slytherin in front of him.

"Wh-what?" Harry gasped, "What…revenge?" It took him a moment to process the meaning of Draco's words. "Draco! Let me go!" He began struggling against his invisible bonds, but Draco just smirked at him before leaning in to capture Harry's lips in a bruising kiss. By the time he pulled away Harry had stopped struggling against Draco and was just trying to get his breath back. Before he could get his breathing back under control however, Draco trailed his lips across his lover's smooth skin and down his chest to take Harry's nipples in his mouth one-by-one, sucking and biting on the dark nubs and relishing the moans and pleas falling from his lover's mouth. Eventually Draco moved further down, kissing his way to where Harry's hard length jutted out from a nest of dark curls. Kneeling between Harry's legs Draco placed his hands on either side of the brunette's hips to hold him still and then blew a puff of warm air across his head, making Harry shudder.

"Draco, please," Harry moaned, "don't tease!"

"But this is revenge, remember?" Draco looked up with a wicked grin, "What would revenge be without a little teasing?" He bent his head back down and licked a stripe up the underside of Harry's cock before taking the tip in his mouth and sucking lightly. He spent long moments teasing Harry by licking around his cock and never taking more than the tip in his mouth until the brunette was whimpering and writhing against his hold. When he determined that he had teased Harry enough Draco took the other boy's hard length into his mouth until the tip of Harry's penis was brushing the back of his throat-and had to pull back as he gagged. Oddly enough, that sensation drew a whimper from Harry and Draco smirked to himself as he tried it again, concentrating on relaxing his throat; this time it worked and Draco swallowed, causing his captive to moan and writhe again.

"Merlin Draco! Please stop teasing!" Harry pleaded, "I can't-can't-oh Merlin that feels so good! Don't stop!" Draco chose that moment to lean back and release Harry's cock, making the dark-haired boy whimper in displeasure. "Draco-what? Why?"

"I told you," Draco replied, "This was revenge for you being mean to me earlier; I can't stop my revenge until you've learned your lesson."

"What? You-you slimy snake!" Harry yelled, "You can't do this to me!" He gaped in astonishment as Draco lathered up a washcloth, ignoring him and proceeding to wash himself. Harry pulled fruitlessly at his magical restraints, groaning when Draco "accidentally" brushed his erection as he reached for the shampoo. "Okay!" Harry said, "I've learned my lesson Draco; please don't just stop!"

Draco glanced at Harry out of the corner of his eye, considering making him wait a little longer, but he couldn't resist the brunette when he looked so sexy and wanton, with his green eyes full of pleading. Draco offered no verbal response, but merely sank back to his knees, taking Harry's entire length in his mouth once again and making the Gryffindor cry out. Draco used lips, tongue, and the barest edge of teeth to quickly bring Harry to orgasm and eagerly swallowed everything his lover had to offer.

"That was amazing," Harry said, pulling Draco back up as the bonds around his wrists vanished; Harry pressed their lips together for a moment, tasting himself on Draco's lips before he pulled away to smirk at his fiancé, "Not much of a deterrent to make me stop annoying you though." Draco mock-scowled at him and slapped his shoulder before pulling him away from the shower wall.

"Turn around and I'll wash your hair for you," Draco commanded softly, and Harry obeyed, leaning his head back to enjoy the sensation of Draco's fingers working the shampoo into a lather.

About twenty minutes later the boys came out of the bathroom dressed in their pajamas, and Harry's eyes lit up as he saw the small pile of gifts on the bed.

"They came just before I joined you in the shower," Draco smiled, "Do you want to go ahead and open them now?"

"Can I?" Harry asked eagerly, "I know you're as tired as I am, but this should only take a few moments."

"Of course," Draco replied, pulling him over to the bed, "Open them." He watched as

Harry opened the presents, tossing the wrapping paper on the floor. Molly Weasley had sent him the usual snacks, Ron gave him a box of assorted candies from Honeydukes, Hermione gave him a new quill set and a book on Auror training, Ginny gave him a book that made him blush and Draco laugh (it was titled "Boys Who Like Boys: A Guide to a Healthy, Exciting Relationship"), and the twins gave him an assortment of new joke products. "Oh, I have something else from the twins," Draco told him, bringing over the box from the desk, "It seems they at least support our relationship." Harry took one look in the box and his blush-which had been fading-came back full-force.

"Those two and Ginny," Harry shook his head, pushing the box away, "Sometimes I don't know what to do with them."

"Well, I, for one, am going to thank them," Draco said, looking through the book Ginny had given Harry, "Look; she hid the real book inside the relationship guide." He held the book open to a page in the middle that showed two guys in the act of having sex-and since this was a wizarding book, the picture actually moved, leaving nothing to the imagination.

"That looks-how can they do that?" Harry wondered, tilting his head as he examined the picture, "Hey, what's that?" He touched a little symbol at the bottom of the page, and suddenly they could hear the noises the two men were making. "Ah!" Harry cried, slamming the book closed and throwing it across the room, "I did not need to see that-or hear it!" Draco got up and fetched the book, chuckling as he set it down on his bedside table.

"Don't worry Lion; we can look at it later," he helped Harry gather the gifts off the bed and

Moved them over to Harry's trunk, "we'll make room for all of your stuff tomorrow if that's okay; are you ready to go to sleep?"

"Yeah," Harry yawned, "I think I could sleep for about a week." He climbed onto the bed behind Draco and allowed the blonde to pull him down so that his head was resting on Draco's shoulder and Draco's arms wrapped around him. "'Night Dray."

"Good night Lion," Draco replied, kissing the top of his head, and within a few moments both boys were fast asleep.

****************************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note*******************************************************************************************

**So, we have our first steamy scene between the boys and I hope you guys liked it! Thanks to everyone who reviewed, I really appreciate it! I will try to have another chapter up ASAP, and please tell me what you guys thought of this chapter!**


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

"You mentioned that you have something you wanted to discuss with me as well?" Narcissa inquired as the teens left the room.

"Yes," Severus nodded, "I wanted to warn you that Albus has decided that it is his duty to over-throw you and take over this realm-for the greater good, of course. So far he hasn't been able to get through the barrier, but he has set me to watching Harry and Draco to see if I can detect a weakness in the barrier that he would be able to exploit; so far he is unaware of the fact that I am freely able to come and go from the realm."

"He has been trying to breach the wards for years now," Narcissa said dismissively, "The protective wards around this realm were reinforced by Merlin himself, and I doubt Albus has the power to break through; he's not nearly as powerful as he would have everyone believe."

"No," Severus agreed, "but he is clever and has no qualms about using other people to get what he wants; he has proven that time and again over the years. He seems to believe that Harry, especially, is his own personal pawn; things may have been different if I had truly known how he was being treated by his relatives, but Dumbledore assured me Harry was being treated like a treasured son." He sighed and shook his head, "I really should have known better, especially after he sent me back to my parents' house every summer, and manipulated me into spying for him; I want to make sure that he doesn't have the opportunity to manipulate Harry in that way anymore."

"Well, now that Harry is of age and betrothed to Draco, Dumbledore really has no control over him," Narcissa pointed out, "He can stay here except for when he's at school so that Dumbledore won't be able to harass him, and during the school year he will have his friends to back him up."

"Don't think Dumbledore has given up yet," Severus warned, "He told me today that he knows Harry is simply under the influence of your family and that he will "see sense again" once he can get him alone at school; it's only a matter of time before he summons Harry to his office once school begins, and I have no idea what he plans to do next-it seems he doesn't trust me as much as he once did. I imagine he will try to get to Harry through the two youngest Weasley's; he knows of the ancient feud between your families and will use it to convince Ronald that Draco is untrustworthy and thereby cause problems between Harry and Draco."

"Well, you will simply have to assign Harry detention as often as possible," Narcissa smiled, "or hold him back for remedial potions as Draco said you did last year; it must have worked since he passed his exam with an 'O'."

"I was actually attempting to teach him Occlumency," Severus admitted, "however I may not have put forth a good effort…perhaps things will go smoother this year. So, where is Lucius? I haven't seen him since I've been here and he wasn't with you earlier."

"Lucius is in the dungeon," Narcissa informed him, "he was so angry about Harry being here and being unable to turn him over to the Dark Lord that he broke an oath he made to Draco…" She filled Severus in on the events that had happened since Harry showed up in the realm, ending with the trip to Gringotts; "…and then we took a Muggle cab to Harry's relatives, and you know the rest."

"I can't believe you're going to trade Lucius so that you can bring that damn mutt back," Severus shook his head in disgust, "and now that I've cleared his name, I suppose I'll be expected to help?"

"It would be nice," Narcissa said, "I'm sure Harry would appreciate it if you and Sirius could be on better terms, and helping to bring him back from beyond the veil might help your relationship. I'm not entirely sure what the ritual entails because it has been a while since I read the book, so we will need to read it before September 23rd."

"I'll read through it for you," Severus offered, "You know I enjoy reading about obscure rituals; is the book in the main library?"

"No, it's in the family library down the hall from my rooms," Narcissa replied, "If you could read up on the ritual it would be a big help-then I would be able to focus on getting Harry settled in and getting the realm back under control since I have to take over the labyrinth now; I dread having to set up challenges for petitioners." She gave a little shudder at the thought.

"Not too many people actually have the power to call on you though, do they?" Severus asked, "Only someone who has the potential to be your true love can call on you and-even if he is being unreasonable right now-you still have Lucius, and Draco has Harry."

"Yes," Narcissa nodded, "but with Lucius being banished I'm not sure how that will work; it's been so long since I've had to worry about it that I will need to read up on the laws of the realm as well. I never should have allowed Lucius to completely take over ruling the kingdom; it's one of my biggest regrets, and I will make sure that Harry and Draco both are taught how to rule once they are married." She glanced over at the clock on the mantle and stood up, "If you'll excuse me for a moment, I need to contact Molly Weasley for Harry; it seems that he was supposed to go on a cruise with the Weasley's before Dumbledore interfered and I promised I would see if it's still possible for us to join them."

"Of course," Severus stood up as well, "If you don't mind I'll go look into that ritual for bringing the mutt-I guess I should start calling him Sirius-back."

"That will be fine," Narcissa agreed, "I'll meet you in the study in after I speak to Molly." Severus nodded his agreement and then swept out of the room with his robes billowing behind him, leaving Narcissa to firecall Molly.

About twenty minutes later Narcissa had purchased room on the cruise ship for herself, Luna and the boys and settled the details with Molly, who said that they would be rejoining the cruise tomorrow morning; she had also contacted Augusta Longbottom and received permission for Neville to join them-he would be arriving in the realm after breakfast-and informed Luna's father that the girl would be going on the cruise with them. After some thought, Narcissa decided that she would let the boys sleep for the rest of the evening and go shopping for Harry so that they could also join the cruise the following day; the cruise was for two weeks and catered exclusively to wizards, so they could apparate on at any time.

Once Narcissa had arranged the cruise details she went to meet Severus in the study; he was sitting at the desk and Luna was sitting on a chair near him; the girl was talking about snuffleflies and obviously wearing on Severus' nerves.

"Luna dear, what are you doing up?" Narcissa asked, taking the other chair in front of the desk, "Shouldn't you be getting some sleep?"

"I'm not tired," Luna replied cheerfully, "I was able to take a nap while Harry was making his way through the labyrinth; are we going on the cruise tomorrow Aunt Cissa?"

"Yes," Narcissa confirmed, "We will leave after breakfast tomorrow, so I am going to let the boys sleep tonight; since you're up anyway, would you like to go to Diagon Alley and help me Harry some new clothes? I'm certain he doesn't have much in the way of decent clothing."

"Oh, I love shopping," Luna said dreamily, "I've been meaning to buy more purple clothing-it seems to calm the blibbering humdingers."

"Wonderful; why don't you go change clothes and then you can meet me back down here when you're done." Luna nodded her agreement and skipped out of the room.

"I don't know how you do it," Severus commented once he was sure Luna was gone, "Lovegood can drive me insane after just a few moments of conversation; blibbering humdinger's, snuffleflies and cinnadoms indeed." He scowled into the cup of tea he'd had a goblin bring to him.

"You just have to get used to her," Narcissa replied, amused, "Sometimes I actually start to believe that those creatures are real and Luna has some sort of second sight that allows her to see them." She gave a small laugh before changing the subject, "Were you able to find the book?"

"Yes," Severus nodded, holding up a small black book that had the title ("Obscure Rituals and the Blackest Magic") written in blood-red script, "and I found some rather disturbing information while I was reading through it; you know it has information on different types of obscure rituals, including some that involve the darkest of magic?" Narcissa nodded and he continued, "Well, I came across a word that I would have discounted previously, if not for something Albus said earlier-when he was mocking Harry he mentioned that the scar wasn't the only thing the Dark Lord gave him."

"I remember," Narcissa said quietly, "You're starting to scare me Severus; what did the book say?"

"It mentions horcruxes," Severus said softly, looking at the table, "In Harry and Draco's second year Lucius slipped a book to the youngest Weasley, one that allowed the Dark Lord's memory to possess her-"

"And the Chamber of Secrets was opened," Narcissa interrupted impatiently, "I remember; stop procrastinating and just tell me!"

"The diary-which was destroyed by Harry-was a horcrux," Severus said, "It was an object that contained a piece of the Dark Lord's soul, which was destroyed along with the diary. I remember hearing Albus talking to himself a few months ago, and he mentioned something about the Dark Lord creating six and that the seventh must have been an accident; I think he was saying that the Dark Lord intentionally created six horcruxes, and that a seventh, accidental horcrux was created that night in Godric's Hollow." Narcissa let out a horrified gasp and Severus nodded, "Yes; I believe Harry was the seventh horcrux- he has a connection to the Dark Lord, and has seen into his mind by accident numerous times, but it gets worse."

"How could it get worse?" Narcissa demanded, "Harry is carrying around a piece of the Dark Lord's soul; no wonder he has all those nightmares! Draco overheard Harry talking to his friends about the dreams," she said to Severus' questioning look and he nodded his understanding.

"Well, you asked how it could get worse?" he continued, "When I overheard Albus talking to himself about this he was muttering, and I quote: "They all have to be destroyed; poor Harry, but it really is for the greater good-I must make sure he is ready when the time comes for the final sacrifice." I wasn't sure what he meant at the time, but now I'm sure of it-Albus intends for Harry to die in the final battle; I believe he thinks that is the only way to completely destroy the Dark Lord. It seems that all this time he had me swear to protect Harry just so that he could be sacrificed when Dumbledore thought the time was right."

"No!" Narcissa cried, "It can't be true; there must be some way to free Harry from the horcrux without destroying him! Please, Severus, tell me there's another way?" Her face was ashen at the thought of Harry's death; he was such a sweet boy, and his loss would surely destroy Draco.

"I'm sure there is," Severus said comfortingly, "We just have to find it; your library and mine have numerous books on the dark arts, and I haven't even finished reading the section on horcruxes in this book yet-there is a list of related title at the end of this section as well which I shall attempt to locate. I know Albus doesn't intend for Harry to face the Dark Lord until after his seventeenth birthday, so we still have time for research; once we bring back that damn mutt-Sirius-then we can have access to the Black Library as well. The only question is when should we tell Harry?"

"Must we tell him?" Narcissa asked, looking distressed, "He's so young, and it would only upset him and Draco; why can't we just look into it ourselves and tell him after we find a solution?" Severus met her gaze solemnly as he replied;

"I understand you wish to protect him, but Albus has been keeping things from him ever since he started school-not to mention it seems that the Dursley's have lied to him about his parents and magic his entire life," Severus said, "If I've noticed anything over the years, it's that Harry resents being kept in the dark; if we don't tell him and then he finds out on his own, he will resent us for it and may never trust us again. I am still trying to earn his trust after I treated him so poorly for the last five years; I don't want to mess this up."

"I suppose you're right," Narcissa conceded with a sigh, "Let's let him enjoy the cruise at least, and I'll tell him when we get back; no sense in worrying him when he is supposed to be enjoying himself."

"That should be fine," Severus nodded, "I'll be able to do research while you are gone, and I may even have a solution by the time you get back; how long is the cruise for?"

"It's a two week cruise," Narcissa responded, "but it started July 28th, so we'll only be gone for ten days; we'll join the cruise sometime after breakfast tomorrow-Draco will need time to pack of course, so it may be closer to lunch time before we leave."

"Will the boys be sharing a room?" Severus inquired, "They just got betrothed today-or yesterday- and they have been fighting for most of the past five years."

"They can share a room if they want, or Harry can stay with one of the Weasley's-I believe he was originally supposed to room with Ronald," Narcissa said, "Harry is already sharing Draco's room here though, so it won't be a big deal if they share a room on the cruise as well; I just hope Sirius doesn't cause any problems between the boys when we bring him back." She frowned for a moment before shaking her head, "I'll just have to deal with that if it happens. What did you find out about the ritual?"

"Well, the ritual calls for five people in addition to the ones being swapped," Severus informed her, "The two people making the exchange each need an anchor so that they will be able to come back to this realm; it needs to be someone close to them, but someone with blood ties would work best, which means you would anchor Draco and I would be able to anchor Harry. Then we need one additional person to actually say the incantation."

"I can do it," Luna chirped as she skipped back into the room, "I like incantations; they're like magical songs."

"We'll see," Narcissa said, "We still have about two months before we can do the ritual. Now Luna, are you ready to go? And must you really wear that?" The young blonde girl was wearing a bright pink dress and yellow tights underneath a lime green robe with flashing purple hearts, purple ballet flats, and orange earrings that were shaped like suns and actually glowed.

"This will keep the blibbering humdingers happy and scare away the wrackspurts," Luna replied, "I know we don't need the distraction."

"Very well," Narcissa sighed in resignation, "We'll be back in a few hours Severus; feel free to make yourself at home, and you are welcome to visit Lucius if you like."

"I may just do that," Severus said, "If you don't mind I may stay the night and see you off in the morning."

"You know you're more than welcome to stay here as long as you like," Narcissa smiled as she stood up, "We always keep your room free. Just leave me a note if you do decide to leave before I return." She walked around the desk to give Severus a kiss on the cheek before taking Luna by the hand and apparating to Diagon Alley.

Narcissa and Luna returned two hours later, laden down with shopping bags and exhausted from their shopping excursion. Well, Narcissa was exhausted, what with trying to keep the flighty girl from wandering off on her own, shopping for Harry, and avoiding questions from some of Lucius' suspicious Death Eater contacts that were wandering through Diagon Alley. After the action-filled day she'd had-she was still slightly shaken from her time at the ministry-Narcissa was looking forward to going to bed early.

"Go ahead and take your bags upstairs Luna," Narcissa said, "and then I would recommend getting some sleep; Neville will be here just after breakfast so we should be leaving for the cruise soon after."

"Okay Aunt Cissa," Luna agreed, "I'll go to bed after I pack my suitcase. Good night!" She kissed her aunt on the cheek, gathered her packages, and headed upstairs, humming the whole way. After Luna had gone Narcissa banished the remaining bags up to Draco's room so that the boys would see them when they got up, and then headed back to the small study where she had left Severus, only to find it empty. Narcissa opened a viewing window into the dungeons and saw that Severus was visiting with Lucius, and the two men were arguing; Lucius was apparently trying to convince Severus to let him out and Severus was refusing. Shaking her head in sorrow Narcissa gazed at her misguided husband for a moment before closing the viewing window. She left a note on the desk in the study to let Severus know she had returned and to inform him that breakfast would be served at seven, and then headed to the room she used to sleep in when she was younger-she didn't care to sleep in the master bedroom without Lucius-where she fell asleep at once.

********************************************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note***************************************************************************

**It's a short chapter, but I hope you guys liked it, even though Harry and Draco weren't a part of it. Don't worry though-next chapter you'll definitely get to see some more of the boys as they get ready for the cruise. After that, it's back to Hogwarts! Do you think the boys should be able to share a room once they get back to school, or should Dumbles make them sleep in their own dorms? Thanks to everyone who reviewed, and please keep them coming! Until next time ^_^**


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

Harry woke slowly the next morning with the feel of sunshine on his face, silk sheets against his skin, and strong arms around his waist.

'What a dream,' he thought drowsily, 'Imagine me engaged to Draco, who is heir to an entire kingdom! That's so crazy; it must have been that movie I watched yesterday. And Severus as my uncle, actually treating me decently-that would definitely never happen! It was a nice dream though…' He felt soft lips press a kiss to the side of his neck and snuggled deeper into the warm embrace, murmuring contentedly. 'Wait a minute!' His eyes shot open and-instead of the drab walls of his bedroom on Privet Drive-he saw a luxurious bedroom and realized that it wasn't a dream after all; he rolled over and found himself looking into warm grey eyes and he smiled at his fiancé.

"It wasn't a dream," he said softly, "I'm so glad." Draco smiled back and pressed his lips to Harry's, making the brunette blush; after falling asleep and thinking that it was all a dream kissing Draco felt new again, and he found himself wondering why the blonde prince would want him.

"Definitely not a dream," Draco replied, leaning back a little so he could look Harry in the eyes, "Do you regret it?"

"No," Harry replied, then grinned mischievously, "Not yet anyway, but the day is young so there's still plenty of time for you to make me regret this. Hey!" He let out a startled cry as Draco rolled on top of him, captured his wrists in one hand, and then began tickling him. "D-Dray! S-stop it!" He protested between giggles, "D-Draco!" Draco continued tickling him until Harry was gasping for breath. "Okay! I'm sorry!" He panted, "D-don't regret it!" He closed his eyes in relief when Draco finally stopped tickling him.

"That's what you get for teasing me Lion," Draco smirked, brushing his lips across Harry's forehead before rolling off of him and climbing out of bed, "Come on; time to get up." He held out a hand to help the brunette get up and the Harry took it while glaring at Draco.

"You're mean," he pouted, "Maybe I should push you off the cruise or-better yet-leave you here."

"You wouldn't dare," Draco glared at him, "Besides, you started it. Oh look; Mother went shopping." He pointed at the numerous bags over in the corner and pulled Harry over to help him go through them; "It looks like it's new clothes for you Lion; they aren't big enough for me."

"That reminds me," Harry began, thinking back to the way his clothes had vanished the day before, "why did my clothes turn into a bunch of dead leaves and stuff? It was embarrassing!"

"Oh, sorry about that," Draco said, trying to fight a smile, "I guess I accidentally gave you a set of clothes that had been created out of cobwebs and shadows; it's an ability our family has as descendants of Tatiana, the first Queen of the Fae. Unfortunately, the clothes don't last long outside of this realm unless the magic is reinforced; I usually dispose of outfits like that once I've worn them, so I can't imagine why they were still in the wardrobe." Just then they were interrupted by a knock on the door, and Narcissa's voice called to them;

"Boys! Are you up?"

"Yes, Mother," Draco responded, "You can come in." A moment later the door opened and Narcissa entered, already dressed for the day in a long, flowing blue gown and white sandals.

"I arranged for us to join the cruise later today," Narcissa informed them, "Neville will be coming over just after breakfast, so once you have eaten and packed we can leave. Did you find your clothes Harry?"

"Yes," Harry smiled and gave her a kiss on the cheek, "Thank you Narcissa. I'll go ahead and pack now and then come down for breakfast; there's still ten days left, right?"

"Yes," she replied, "but don't worry; if you forget anything we can always buy it on the cruise or send a house elf back to collect it. In fact, why don't I just have Tillie pack for you boys?" She saw Harry's questioning look and added, "Tillie is the house elf I inherited from my parents when I turned sixteen, and is one of the few that stays in the goblin realm with me; she oversees much of the work that the goblins and dwarves handle to make sure it's done correctly. If we wait for Draco to pack his own suitcase it would be another two days before we could leave." She and Harry shared a laugh at Draco's indignant expression.

"I resent that!" the young Slytherin said, "I can't help it if I want to make sure I am properly prepared for any situation that might come up!" He glared at Harry and Narcissa until the brunette kissed his cheek.

"Stop pouting Dray," Harry said, "In a few hours we'll be on a cruise, far away from Dumbledore and all the stupid things we have to deal with here." Draco glared at him for another second before sighing in a self-suffering sort of way.

"Very well, I will overlook that insulting comment-this time; give us a moment to get dressed and we'll be right down Mother," Draco said, and Narcissa nodded.

"I still have to get Luna up," she said, "so I'll see you on the patio out in the back garden; I thought it would be nice to have breakfast outside today. Don't let him take too long Harry." She kissed each of the boys on the cheek before leaving the room and closing the door behind her.

"Time to get dressed," Draco said cheerfully, grabbing his wand and levitating the bags of clothes onto the bed, "Let's see…what should you wear today?" He began sorting through the clothes and separating them into piles.

"I can pick out my own clothes," Harry protested, "I've been dressing myself for years."

"I could tell," Draco returned drily, "and that is exactly why I'm going to pick out your outfit for today. Hmm…here we go; wear this." He tossed Harry a pair of khaki shorts and a dark blue button up shirt with short sleeves.

"No," Harry shook his head grinning as he sorted through a different bag, "I'm wearing this." He held up a pair of dark jean shorts and a black t-shirt with an animated golden snitch.

"I can't believe Mother bought those Muggle jeans," Draco wrinkled up his nose in disgust, "Alright; I suppose I can let you wear them this once."

"Like you could stop me," Harry laughed as he headed for the bathroom, "Now hurry and get dressed; I'm starting to get hungry." He closed the bathroom door before Draco could reply and quickly got dressed and brushed his teeth; he ran a comb through his unruly locks to get rid of the tangles and try to make it look presentable but soon gave it up as a lost cause. He opened the bathroom door and found that Draco was just buttoning up his shirt; Harry stood back and leaned against the linen closet to watch as Draco finished getting ready. The Slytherin ran a comb through his platinum locks and reached for his hair gel; he was startled when Harry held out a hand to stop him.

"Your hair looks better without the gel," the brunette said, "When you have your hair slicked back it makes you look like a prat-no offense."

"Gee, why should I be offended?" Draco asked drily, "You only insulted me and said that my hairstyle makes me look like a prat. You, Harry, simply have no sense of style." He turned up his nose, but left the gel sitting on the sink and brushed his teeth instead.

About fifteen minutes later Draco was finally ready and the boys headed downstairs to find Severus sitting on the patio by himself and enjoying a cup of coffee.

"Morning Uncle Sev," Draco greeted him, pulling out a chair for Harry before sitting down beside him, "Are you going on the cruise as well?"

"Of course not," Severus scoffed, "Do you really expect me to suffer through two weeks on a cruise surrounded by you dunderheads? I especially shudder at the thought of the trouble the Weasley twins are bound to cause." He paused to take a sip of his coffee before leveling a stare at Draco, "Oh and Draco? If you call me Sev one more time I will use you for potions ingredients."

"He can't help himself," Harry commented, "He doesn't seem to know how to call people by their actual names; maybe we should come up with an annoying nickname for him."

"Oh, you mean like 'Ferret'?" Draco questioned, arching an eyebrow, and Harry blushed for a moment before retorting;

"You're one to talk; does 'Scarhead' ring any bells? Not to mention the names you called Ron and Hermione-"

"You have both done your fair share of name-calling," Severus interrupted, "and I'm sure you'll do more of it in the future. Now Draco; I gave your mother some sunblock potions-if you take two spoonful's before you go out for the day it should prevent you from getting a sunburn." He focused his gaze on Harry and added, "I also made some lower strength sunblock potions for you, since you aren't as pale as Draco-I would recommend taking it for at least the first few days."

"Aw, I didn't know you cared," Harry teased, "Thanks Severus; you're so nice!"

"And you are obnoxious," Severus returned, glaring at his nephew, "Draco by himself was bad enough, but now…I'd like to find whoever decided that you two should be together and curse them."

"Come on, we're not that bad," Draco protested, "We couldn't possible cause more trouble by being together than we did when we were fighting, right?"

"Actually," Harry began thoughtfully, "when we were fighting we mostly caused problems for each other and sometimes the teachers; now that we're together we'll have more opportunity to cause problems for other people, and we would be working together, so I can see where Uncle Severus would be worried."

"I knew Gryffindor's were troublemakers!" Severus said triumphantly, "Minerva said you just stumble upon trouble by accident, that none of it is intentional, but now I know that you actually plan to cause trouble." Harry cocked his head to the side and smiled innocently at the Potions Master.

"Did I ever tell you about the conversation I had with the Hat during my Sorting?" The question was asked innocently enough, but the mischievous glint in Harry's eyes made him nervous.

"Are we finally going to finish that conversation from your dream earlier?" Draco leaned forward eagerly, "You never did explain what actually happened." Harry nodded, smiling.

"It all started back during the Sorting Ceremony at the beginning of my first year," Harry began, adopting the story-telling voice he had learned from Fred and George, "The Sorting Hat seemed to be having a bit of trouble figuring out where to put me. It told me I had plenty of courage-"

"Meaning he doesn't have enough sense to know when to back down," Draco muttered, earning a glare from Harry.

"-and not a bad mind," Harry continued, "and talent and a thirst to prove myself; since the Hat seemed to be having such a difficult time placing me, I thought I would help it out by narrowing down the choices; I told it very firmly, 'Not Slytherin' and-"

"Wait, you _told_ the Hat not to put you in Slytherin?" Severus demanded, "Why would you do that?"

"Please, you should have seen how scared he was," Draco scoffed, "If you're going to tell the story then at least do us the courtesy of telling the truth, and please explain _why _you didn't want to be put in Slytherin."

"Fine," Harry pouted, "I didn't want to go to Slytherin because Hagrid told me that every witch and wizard who ever went bad came from Slytherin, including the psycho who killed my parents, and I had also already met Draco-who was very stuck up and rude at that age-and he said he would be in Slytherin, so I knew right away that I wanted to avoid Slytherin at all costs. So when the Hat was trying to figure out where to put me, I begged it to put me anywhere but Slytherin. The Hat told me that I could be great and Slytherin would help me get there, but since I really didn't want to go to Slytherin it put me in Gryffindor instead."

"What you're saying," Severus began slowly, "is that the Hat's first choice for you was Slytherin, but you convinced it to put you somewhere else instead?"

"I didn't convince it," Harry scowled, "I just asked it not to put me in Slytherin; you make it sound like I manipulated the Hat, which Hermione told me is impossible. Although, I did try the Hat on again in second year when I was waiting for Dumbledore in his office, and it told me it stood by what it said, that I could be great in Slytherin, so I ripped the Hat off and pretended that it never happened. So you see Uncle Sev, those trouble-making tendencies are probably Slytherin qualities."

"Hello boys," Narcissa and Luna walked in before Severus could comment on being called 'Sev' again, "Why haven't you started eating?"

"We were just discussing a few things," Severus replied, "Also, it's rude to begin eating before the hostess is seated."

"Well, let's get started," Narcissa said, "I just received a message from Augusta; Neville should be here in about half an hour, so we should all be ready to leave by then. Harry dear, have some French toast."

At Narcissa's urging everyone filled their plates and they discussed the cruise over breakfast. As they finished eating, a goblin came in and bowed to Narcissa.

"Neville Longbottom is in the blue study," he announced, "Shall I bring him in?"

"No, we shall meet him in the study," Narcissa said as she stood and the goblin bowed before leaving; "Tillie has already packed for you boys and Luna, so why don't you join Neville and I will follow in a few moments? I just want to make sure I have everything we need." The teens agreed and headed out to meet up with Neville.

They found Neville sitting at a table in the study, thoroughly engrossed in an open book in front of him.

"Hey Nev," Harry greeted him, and Neville looked up with a smile, "What's that you're reading?"

"It's a book on the different plants in the realm," Neville replied, "It's really interesting; I wish I could have time to study the plants here. So, what happened with the labyrinth? I'm guessing you lost since you're still here?"

"He outsmarted himself," Draco smirked, taking hold of Harry's hand after transfiguring a chair into a two-seater sofa and pulling the brunette to sit down with him, "Do you want to tell him what happened, or shall I?"

"I'd rather wait until we get on the cruise," Harry said, "that way I only have to tell the story and embarrass myself one time."

"Why don't you bring a viewing sphere?" Luna suggested, and Harry realized with a start that it was the first time she had spoken all day, "Then you can show everyone what happened."

"That's not a bad idea," Draco said approvingly, "I can get one right now." He walked over to one of the bookshelves and opened small case, pulling out a small sphere with a lightning bolt on it. "Here it is; and I can activate it anywhere." He looked extremely self-satisfied as he once again took his seat next to Harry.

"You know, I'm not sure if I'm comfortable with everyone seeing that," Harry said, "There are a few things that happened which are very…private." His face was slightly flushed as he recalled some of his encounters with Draco during the labyrinth.

"Don't worry," Draco put an arm around his waist and smiled at him reassuringly, "This sphere will only show what happened during the labyrinth, and the proposal; it won't show them what happened in the shower last night."

"Draco!" Harry pushing the blonde away as his face turned red, "You can't mention that in front of people!" Draco just smirked and pulled Harry to lean back against him again, pressing a quick kiss to his temple, causing Harry to roll his eyes even as his lips turned up in a small smile.

"Did the Snargles come back while you were showering?" Luna asked solemnly, "They have been acting very strange lately-travelling long distances from their mistletoe and going near water; they normally hate water."

"I really don't think we want to know what happened last night," Neville said as the tips of his ears turned red, "By the way, thanks for inviting me Harry; I don't really get the chance to do much because Gran has always been so protective of me, but ever since you let me come with you last May she has been really proud of me and letting me do more."

"I'm glad," Harry smiled, "I always knew you could do well if you had a little encouragement."

"I suppose you're the one who told Neville that he was worth ten of me back in first year," Draco drawled, "I was shocked when he actually stood up to me."

"I can't believe you remember that," Harry laughed, "Ron told me about it later; you really were a prat back then Dray, always using Crabbe and Goyle to bully everyone." He frowned in thought, "Am I going to have to put up with them too this year?"

"Not likely," Draco replied, "They are determined to follow in their father's footsteps and be Death Eater's, so it would probably be a good idea to stay away from them; they're just stupid enough to try and kidnap you for the Dark-you don't like when I call him that, do you?" He observed Harry's frown, "It's just a habit really; I've never called him anything else-you-know-who is just ridiculous, and I can't bring myself to call him…you know."

"I understand it can be hard," Harry said, "but not calling him by his name just increases everyone's fear of him; if you can't call him Voldemort you could always do like the twins and call him Voldie, or even Tom."

"Tom?" Draco raised his eyebrows, "Why would I call him Tom?"

"Because that's his true name," Harry said, "Long story, but old Voldie was actually born Tom Marvolo Riddle." He pulled out his wand and performed the same charm that Tom Riddle had shown him back in second year; he wrote Tom's name in the air with fiery letter's and then made the letters rearrange themselves to spell _I am Lord Voldemort_. "Tom himself showed me that back in second year when he tried to kill Ginny."

"The most evil dark wizard of our time's real name is _Tom_?" Draco said incredulously.

"He's also a half-blood," Harry informed him, "His mother was a witch, but his father was

a Muggle; Voldemort is nothing but a hypocrite."

"Wrong," Severus said, entering the room with Narcissa, "the Dark Lord is a _powerful_ hypocrite, and he is more than a little insane now, although nowhere near as bad as Bellatrix."

"Did you know his real name is Tom?" Draco demanded, and Severus nodded, "It's bad enough following a power-hungry lunatic, but a power-hungry lunatic with a name like Tom? That's just…stupid!"

"Why do you think he changed his name?" Severus asked drily.

"My name is pretty boring too," Harry pointed out, "Especially compared to the people in this room…Draco, Narcissa, Severus, Luna, Neville…"

"Your name is not boring," Draco protested, "Harry used to be a nickname for Henry, which means "Ruler of the Home"; it's a much better name than Tom. Hmmm…I wonder if they named you Harry because of the connection between the Potter's and the Tudor's?"

"You mean the connection that has never been proven?" Narcissa smiled, "You never know; it sounds like something James would have done-the first king who ruled after the Tudor's was King James I and he was cousin to Elizabeth, I believe. That's enough with the history lesson for today; if everyone is ready to go the ship is currently in port so now would be the best time to go; I can open a portal on the ship itself."

"I'm ready," Harry stood up excitedly, pulling Draco with him, "Where are our trunks?"

"They have already been shrunk and I'm carrying them in my purse," Narcissa replied, "Do the rest of you have everything you need?" They was a chorus of agreements, and Narcissa clapped her hands once, "Wonderful! I shall open the portal then, and we can get going. Severus, you know you are welcome to come and go as you please, and we will see you when we get back, right?"

"Of course," Severus nodded, "We will have much to discuss before school starts again. Have fun, and be careful." He stood back as Narcissa closed the door in the study and turned it into a portal.

"Okay, Harry and Draco, you go first, then Luna and Neville, and I will follow so that I can close the portal behind us." Everyone nodded and Harry and Draco stepped up to the portal first; they stepped through holding hands, and were quickly followed by Luna and Neville.

"I don't think Albus will try anything before school starts back," Severus began, "but keep your eyes open and contact me if you notice anything strange."

"Don't worry," Narcissa smiled, "We'll be fine." She kissed Severus on the cheek before stepping up to the portal, "I know you plan on researching while we're gone, but don't forget to relax a bit as well; you won't do anyone any good if you wear yourself out. 'Bye Sev!" She gave a small wave before stepping through the portal, and Severus watched until the blue glow faded and he was alone in the study once more.

*******************************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note********************************************************************************

**Another short chapter; I almost combined it with the previous chap, but it just felt right to me to separate it. I know the story has slowed down a bit, and it will probably stay at this pace for another chapter or two, but things will get more exciting once they head back to school, so don't worry! Thanks to everyone who reviewed chapter 13, and thank you to all my readers for your patience; I update as quickly as I can, but between work and sharing a computer with three other people it can be hard sometimes, so please just bear with me!**


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

"Harry James Potter!" Harry winced as he stepped out of the portal and found himself being wrenched away from Draco and pulled into a smothering hug by Molly Weasley, "How dare you…you scared me half to death! Leaving the house like that with nothing but a note! And then Arthur went to your Aunt's house to make sure you were okay and you were nowhere to be found! I can't believe you lied to me like that!" She loosened her grip only to shake Harry by the shoulders and glare at him.

"I never lied to you Mrs. Weasley," Harry protested as he pried her hands off his shoulders, "I said I was going to make sure my family was safe, and I have never considered the Dursley's to be my family; I was talking about Draco and Narcissa. No matter what you think, Draco and I are engaged and I will be staying in the other realm with him, except for when we are in school." He stepped away and reached back until he felt Draco grab his hand; he also sensed Luna and Neville standing close by and drew strength from their presence. "I'm sorry I made you worry, but he is my family now, and if you can't accept the Malfoy's then you don't accept me."

"Well, I never!" Molly cried, offended, "Harry James-"

"Please stop," Harry interrupted, "I appreciate everything you have done for me, but you aren't my mother and, as of yesterday, I am an adult in the eyes of the ministry; I can take care of myself."

"No you can't," Draco scoffed, "I've heard about everything that has happened to you over the past five years, and you definitely need someone to look out for you; don't worry though-now you have me." He let go of Harry's hand to wrap an arm around the brunette's waist and placed a quick kiss on his forehead before facing Molly Weasley. "Mrs. Weasley, I know our families haven't always been on the best of terms, but I really do love Harry; I apologized to him for everything I've done over the years-"

"No you didn't," Harry interrupted, pulling away slightly so he could look Draco in the eyes, "You never apologized for anything you've done…I can't believe I got engaged to you and you never even said you were sorry." He mock-glared at Draco and the blonde smiled slightly before turning solemn.

"Harry James Potter, I Draco Lucius Malfoy, apologize for all the horrible things I have done to you over the years," Draco began, "You are the love of my life and-"

"Okay, I accept," Harry interrupted, covering Draco's mouth with his hand to stop him before he could say anything embarrassing, "and I'm sorry for the things I've done to you over the years; there-now we've both apologized and we can start over with a clean slate."

"Well, if Harry can forgive you then I suppose I can too," Molly said reluctantly, "but I will be keeping my eyes on you young man!"

"Thanks Mrs. Weasley," Harry smiled, "That really means a lot to me-"

"What about the event at the bank yesterday?" Luna interrupted, "Remember Draco? Harry-"

"We already dealt with that," Harry interrupted, his face turning red as he remembered exactly how they had dealt with it, "So, Draco, clean slate, right?"

"I suppose," Draco agreed, "Shall we seal it with a kiss?" Harry rolled his eyes but leaned forward to give Draco a quick peck on the lips; Draco had other ideas, however, and he tangled his hand in the brunette's hair, tilting his head back for a better angle, and Harry wrapped his arms around his fiancés neck.

"Oh gross! I did not want to see that!" Harry pulled away blushing and looked around Draco to see a red-faced Ron and a smiling Hermione, "Do you have to do that where anyone can see you?"

"Yes, we do," Draco smirked, "That's what people who are engaged do."

"Hey Ron, 'Mione," Harry smiled, "I can't believe I'm actually here!"

"Me neither Mate," Ron grinned, clapping him on the shoulder.

"Yeah, he thought Malfoy was going to keep you locked up in a dungeon or something," Ginny said as she joined the group, "So, Malfoy; I guess we should put our differences aside and try to get along for Harry's sake. I'll forgive you if you forgive me."

"Okay," Draco said, "It's all behind us now; I forgive you and I apologize for everything I've done." He turned to Ron and Hermione, "I apologize to you two as well-especially you, Granger; I never should have called you a Mudblood, but I was just spouting off the things I heard from my father, even though I know that's no excuse; I really do love Harry and I know you're important to him, so I'd like to move on and try to be friends."

"I accept your apology," Hermione smiled, then gave him a stern look, " and call me Hermione. Just don't start acting like that a prat again, and don't you dare hurt Harry or I will curse you so badly…"

"Point taken," Draco said, "Has anyone seen Mother? She said she would be right behind us…"

"She went to make sure your rooms are in order," Molly said, "Which reminds me, Harry dear, there's an extra bed in Ron's cabin for you, and Luna can squeeze in with Hermione and Ginny-"

"Actually Molly, I thought Harry and Draco would share a room," Narcissa said as she returned with their keys, "and I have an extra bed in my room for Luna; I promised Xenophilius that I would keep a close eye on her while we're on the cruise."

"Oh," Molly was taken aback, "I thought that Neville and Draco would share a room, you know, since Harry and Draco are engaged it isn't really proper for them to room together without a chaperone, and Luna would probably feel more comfortable with her friends, don't you think?"

"That's fine Mrs. Weasley," Luna smiled, "I don't mind sharing with Aunt Cissa." She turned to look at her aunt, "Why can't Harry and Draco share a room on the boat like they do at home? Are you afraid the Snargles followed them? If they are being followed by Snargles it would be better for them to be together, because-"

"Don't worry dear," Narcissa interrupted quickly, "Harry is legally an adult, and I give Draco permission, so they can share a cabin if they wish." She looked at Molly, "I understand you are worried about Harry, but the boys are old enough to make their own decisions. Now, I didn't know if you had enough rooms for extra people, so I got an extra cabin for Neville as well."

"Well, if Harry is staying with Draco," she turned pleading eyes on Harry but he merely smiled and leaned against Draco, so she sighed in resignation, "then Neville can stay in Ron's room, if both boys are okay with it."

"That's fine with me," Neville said, "I don't mind if Ron doesn't."

"No problem Mate," Ron said, "Come on and I'll show you where our cabin is; we're on the fifth level."

"Our rooms are on that level as well," Narcissa said, "Draco and Harry will be staying in room 5606 and Luna and I are in 5608. Here are all of your trunks." She reached into her purse and pulled out the shrunken trunks, handing each one to its owner before leading the way to the lift; once they reached the correct level she faced the teens that had come with her; "Once you get to your cabin just open the lock on your trunk and it will re-size itself. I'll unpack for you Luna, that way you can stay with your friends. It's just after nine, so why don't we meet up for lunch? There's a little diner on deck three that serves American Cuisine; it's supposed to be decorated like a 1950's Muggle diner, whatever that means, but the brochure says the food is good. That's for my group, of course; did you already have plans for lunch Molly?"

"No," Molly replied, "We generally let the kids do what they like and meet up for supper, but lunch at the diner does sound fun, so Arthur and I will definitely be there. What were you planning to do this morning?"

"I thought I would go to the spa," Narcissa replied, "Would you like to join me? My pass allows for me to bring a friend, and I don't think Luna would be interested, are you dear?"

"No Auntie," Luna said, "I want to go with Harry and Neville today; the most interesting things always happen around Harry." Harry scowled at Luna and glared at Draco when the Slytherin laughed at him.

"Well, a trip to the spa sounds fun," Molly said, "Let me just go leave a note for Arthur, and then…should I meet you at your room?"

"Yes, that sounds perfect," Narcissa replied, and then turned to Harry and Draco, "Okay, now you boys be good; Neville and Luna, I'm counting on you to keep them out of trouble and I'll see you all at lunch." The teens all said their good-byes and watched as Narcissa and Molly went to their rooms.

"Why don't you show Neville where you guys are staying and then find the twins and meet Draco and me in our room," Harry suggested to Ron, "Then I can tell you all what happened at the same time."

"Okay," Ron agreed, "Come on Neville, we're in room 5217; the odd number cabins are to the left, and the even numbers are to the right. You coming with us Ginny, 'Mione?"

"I'll go get the twins," Ginny said, "They should still be at the pool; when I left them they were hitting on a couple of witches from America."

"Luna and I will go with you," Hermione said, giving Harry a sly look, "that way the lovebirds can have some time alone."

"But the Snargles always attack when they're alone," Luna protested.

"That's a chance we will just have to take," Draco said solemnly, pulling on Harry's hand and moving down the corridor, "I think we should be safe for…oh, say…twenty minutes?"

"Draco!" Harry protested, "We can have plenty of alone time later;" he dug his heels in, forcing Draco to stop and looked at his friends, "Just come by when you find the twins; we have a lot to talk about, and Draco will just have to deal-won't you?"

"Fine," Draco pouted, "but you owe me!" He continued walking down the hallway, pulling Harry along with him, and they soon left the other teens behind.

"This is amazing," Harry said as they entered their cabin, "It's like we have our own little mini-house; there's even a small kitchen!" He looked around in awe, wandering through the different rooms; their cabin consisted of a living/dining room, a kitchenette, a bedroom and a large bathroom with a spa tub.

"Well, we would have time to enjoy it, but you had to go and invite your friends to come visit us," Draco pointed out as he set their trunks down before moving to join Harry, who was standing on their private deck and looking out at the ocean, "Although…" he snuck up behind Harry and wrapped his arms around the brunette's waist, "…we do have a little time to ourselves before they show up, and we can always just tell them to go away." He peppered kisses down Harry's neck to where he had left a love-bite the night before, and realized that the skin was smooth and un-blemished once again. "You got rid of my love-bite!" He turned Harry to face him and glared at the brunette accusingly, "Why?"

"I-I don't know," Harry muttered, flushing with embarrassment, "I just-everyone would have seen it and…I was embarrassed…"

"Are you embarrassed by me?" Draco demanded, scowling. Harry's eyes widened and he put his arms around Draco's neck, locking gazes with the blonde.

"Of course I 'm not embarrassed by you," he protested, "It's just…I don't think everyone needs to know what we get up to when we're alone. Besides, hickeys are just a way of marking your property-"

"So, are you saying you're not mine then?"

"That's not what I'm saying at all," Harry glared at his fiancé, "I'm just saying that we should keep our private life private, which is why I healed the mark you left."

"But I liked seeing my mark on your skin," Draco pouted, "I liked knowing that I am the only one who can mark you like that." He leaned forward and pressed his lips to Harry's whispering, "I've wanted you for so long but I knew you could never be mine, so now that you are I like being able to see a reminder." He nipped at Harry's bottom lip and the brunette tilted his head back, encouraging Draco to deepen the kiss; Draco took the invitation, pushing Harry against the railing and slipping his tongue in the younger boy's mouth, engaging him in a fierce battle for dominance that soon left Harry feeling light-headed. When he pulled away to catch his breath Draco kissed his way over to Harry's ear, sucking on his earlobe for a moment before trailing kisses down his neck until he reached Harry's pulse point. Draco placed several feather-light kisses over the rapidly beating pulse.

"D-Draco," Harry moaned softly, clasping his hands tighter around the blonde's neck, "Merlin that-don't; ah!" He let out a soft cry when Draco bit down harshly, sucking to leave a mark before soothing the abused skin with his tongue; Draco pulled back to admire the red mark blossoming on Harry's skin and hummed in satisfaction before leaning in to capture Harry's lips once more. Draco's hands moved up from Harry's waist to slip under his tank top and brush lightly over his skin, making the Gryffindor shiver. His skillful fingers had just reached Harry's nipples when they were interrupted by a knock on the door.

"It's 'Mione and Ron…and the twins…and…and…" Harry broke off with a moan as Draco's hands continued to roam over his chest, "We should let them in…"

"They can wait," Draco murmured, nibbling on his ear again; a few minutes later the knocking sounded again, louder this time and Harry pushed Draco away, trying to give him a stern look even though his emerald eyes were slightly clouded with lust.

"We'll have time alone later," Harry said, stepping around Draco to enter the cabin, "Come on Dray." He grabbed Draco's hand and pulled the pouting blonde after him as he opened the door to let his friends in.

"Heya Harry," Fred grinned, putting an arm around his shoulders;

"Draco!" George copied his brother, and the twins pulled the two boys further into the room, leaving the other teens to follow behind.

"So sorry"

"To interrupt"

"But we couldn't"

"Wait to see"

"You guys and"

"Find out what"

"You thought"

"Of the presents"

The twins traded off sentences, which Draco found odd but it left Harry smiling-at least until they brought up the presents, causing him to blush.

"They looked very interesting," Draco drawled, "but we haven't actually tried them out yet. Why don't you all sit down?" He gestured towards the living room as he shrugged George's arm off him and simultaneously freed Harry from Fred. He sat down in an arm chair, glaring at the twins and pulling Harry to sit on his lap.

"Aw, they're so cute!" Ginny squealed, "It's like moonlight and shadows-Draco is all silvery with pale skin, which is a perfect contrast to Harry; you look great together!"

"Thank you," Draco preened, smirking at the room and ignoring Harry's blush.

"Oh, but look!" Luna, who was sitting on the couch between Neville and Ginny, pointed at Harry, "Harry's been attacked by a vampire! We need to get him a garlic necklace for protection before it comes back." The room burst into laughter as an embarrassed Harry turned to glare at the blonde whose lap he was sitting in.

"Draco!" He smacked him upside the head, "I did not heal one hickey just so you could give me another one! I thought we already had this discussion!"

"We did," Draco replied calmly as he rubbed the spot Harry had hit, "but I suppose there was still some miscommunication; I thought I made it clear that I wanted to see my mark on you."

"And I thought I made it clear that I didn't want everyone else to be able to see it!" Harry continued glaring at the smirking Slytherin.

"That's easy to fix," Hermione spoke up, "There's a glamour I read about that will hide something from everyone except for the person that casts the glamour; this way Draco can still see the love-bite but no one else will be able to and that way you will both be happy."

"But I want everyone to see it," Draco pouted, "I want everyone to know Harry is taken so they don't try to steal him from me."

"Isn't that what the ring is for Mate?" Ron asked, "Everyone knows that a wizard who is wearing a bonding ring is already spoken for and that to interfere can result in being challenged to a duel."

"What?" Harry cried, "A duel? But-"

"Don't worry," Neville reassured him, "You have the right to challenge someone to a duel over Draco too; we're not like Muggles-both partners are more equal than in a Muggle relationship."

"Yes, because that's what I was worried about," Harry glowered at the room, "I just wanted to make sure I could declare a duel over Draco so that it would all be fair." The room was silent for a moment before Hermione spoke up again.

"So, Draco; do you want me to teach you that glamour?"

"I already know it," Draco scowled, "I just didn't want to use it, but if it will make Harry feel better than I suppose I must." He sighed dramatically as he pulled out his wand, "The things I do for you Lion." He did the glamour and moments later the love-bite was hidden from Harry's friends although the blonde could still see it, and Draco addressed the other teens, "I suppose you all want to know what happened to Harry while he was in the realm?" There were nods and murmurs of assent and Draco pulled out the small globe he had brought with him. "This is a viewing sphere," he explained, "once I activate it, it will let you all see what happed to Harry from the moment he summoned me to get rid of his cousin."

"Pity that didn't work," Ron commented, "but I guess you still won't have to deal with him, so it's okay, although now you're stuck with Malfoy." He frowned at the Slytherin before sighing and turning to Harry, "I have no idea what you see in him Mate."

"I could tell you," Harry grinned, "but then Draco's ego would grow even bigger and the rest of us wouldn't be able to fit in the room. Ow!" He pouted when Draco pinched him; "You accused me of abusing you yesterday, but now you're abusing me!"

"You hit me first," Draco reminded him, "therefore you are still abusing me; and after I was nice enough to agree to a clean slate."

"This is very entertaining," Ginny interjected, "but I want to know what happened to Harry!" There was a chorus of agreement, so Draco activated the viewing sphere and everyone settled in to watch. The teens were mostly quiet as the scenes flew by-the sphere showed condensed versions of everything that happened-except for soft murmurs from Harry and Draco, usually consisting of Harry protesting (Draco, stop it! My friends will see!) and Draco trying to persuade him that no one was watching them (Come on Lion; they're all watching the sphere- no one will notice!).

About two hours later, just before the group was set to meet up with the adults for lunch, the images from the viewing sphere ended, and Hermione gave Harry a bemused look.

"Really Harry? You outsmarted yourself? How did you manage that?" Hermione mock-glared at Harry, causing the brunette to turn red.

"It was Lucius' fault," he pouted, "if he hadn't interfered then I wouldn't have had to resort to accidentally making myself lose the challenge."

"Luna knocking you into the oubliette didn't help much either," Ron pointed out, "I can't believe she conspired with Draco!"

"Actually, I had no idea what Luna was doing," Draco said, "and, if you'll remember, she got in my way occasionally too."

"I had to save Harry from the Cinnadoms," Luna said calmly, "They seem to be attracted to Harry for some reason, although they follow Draco around as well. They both need to eat more cinnamon-the cinnadoms hate that."

"Yes, well…it's almost time for lunch," Neville said, "Does anyone know where this diner is that we're supposed to meet up at?"

"I do," Hermione said, "Ron and I ate there a few days ago; it's really cool, although I suppose Harry is the only one here who would actually understand some of the décor."

"Are you saying the rest of us are stupid?" Fred inquired.

"I'm wounded you think so little of us!" George agreed and Hermione rolled her eyes.

"I don't think you guys are stupid, but it is a 1950's Muggle-style diner," she pointed out, "As Harry and I are the only ones here who have actually lived in the Muggle world, I don't expect the rest of you have had much experience with Muggle things. Come on; you'll see when we get there."

The teens headed down to the activities deck where the diner was and met up with Narcissa, Molly and Arthur outside the diner. When they entered the wizards looked around in wonder. The old fashioned diner had booths shaped like 1950's cars-Harry had to explain to Draco that no, they weren't real-and a counter set up with barstools. The waitresses all wore long flowing skirts-which Hermione explained were called "poodle skirts" and roller skates, the latter of which fascinated Arthur to no end. Each car/booth had a small jukebox on top of the table that was filled with Muggle songs that were popular in America in the 1950's, and the silencing charms allowed each table to listen to the music of their choice.

"Yakety-yak…Tutti-Frutti…Be-Bop-A-Lula…" Draco looked through the songs listed, "Muggle songs have really weird names. What is Rock and Roll?"

"It's a type of music," Hermione replied, "most of the songs listed are Rock and Roll songs; here I'll play a few." She took out a sickle and put it in the coin slot, saying; "This will give us ten songs, so what should we play?"

"Something from Elvis," Harry said, "If we're going to listen to Rock and Roll, we might as well listen to the King." Harry had learned a little bit about American Rock music when one of Dudley's friends-Piers-brought his American cousin Adam to the house. Adam stayed with Piers for a month during the summer holidays and had felt bad when he saw the way Harry was treated, so he gave him a collection of Muggle "Oldies" C.D.'s and a book on old Rock and Roll artists.

"Let's see…" Hermione went through the list of Elvis songs, "There's 'Jailhouse Rock', 'Heartbreak Hotel', 'Hound Dog', 'Don't Be Cruel', 'Teddy Bear', and; hey! 'Devil in Disguise' did not come out in the '50's; it came out in the early 60's!"

"Let's do 'Teddy Bear' and 'Jailhouse Rock'," Harry suggested, "I always liked both of those songs."

"Okay," Hermione agreed, "I also want to play 'Hound Dog' and they have Johnny Cash on here, so we have to do 'I walk the Line'; that makes four songs-any other requests?"

"How about 'Purple People Eater'," George suggested.

"And Yakety-Yak," Fred piped up.

The groups also decided to listen to 'Lollipop', 'Earth Angel', 'Stupid Cupid' and 'Rock and Roll is Here to Stay'. Not long after they selected their music a waitress wearing a white button-up blouse with a blue poodle-skirt with her blonde hair pulled back into a bouncy pony-tail came by to take their order. The pure-bloods were unfamiliar with the Muggle menu items so deferred to Harry and Hermione to order their food; they ordered burgers and fries for everyone, and also ordered a soda and milkshake for each person after verifying their preference of chocolate, vanilla or strawberry.

_It was a one-eyed, one-horned Flying Purple People Eater…I said Mr. Purple People Eater don't eat me…He replied in a voice so gruff "I wouldn't eat you 'cause you're so tough"…Mr. Purple People Eater what's your line…Eating Purple People and it sure is fine, but that's not the reason that I came to land-I want to get a job in a rock and roll band!"_

"How strange," Draco wrinkled his nose as the song continued to play, "a flying purple people eater? Muggles sure have strange creatures!"

"It's not a real creature," Hermione giggled, "It was made up by the people who wrote this song, and it's supposed to be an alien from another planet."

"They are so real," Luna argued, "you just don't see them here because they only eat purple people and there are no purple people on earth." There was a small silence for a moment and then the next song came on.

_Oh baby let me be your teddy bear…put a chain around my neck and lead me anywhere…oh let me be your lovin' teddy bear…I don't wanna be a tiger 'cause tigers play too rough…I don't wanna be a lion 'cause lions ain't the kind you love enough…I just wanna be your teddy bear…_

"That's so sweet," Ginny said, a mischievous glint in her eye, "Harry, is Draco your teddy bear?"

"I think not!" Draco protested, "I am no one's teddy bear! If anything Harry is my Lion." He smirked at everyone, and Harry leaned over to kiss his cheek.

"Of course he isn't a teddy bear," Harry replied, "He's my Dragon." Harry was pleased to see a faint flush on Draco's cheeks as the blonde glared at him, but forestalled any arguments by pressing his lips to Draco's, leaving the blonde with a self-satisfied smirk when they pulled away. The group continued to talk about the songs as they came on, each person finding one that they really liked.

After lunch the group separated again; the adults decided to go see some sort of show, while the teens all changed into their swimsuits and met up by the pool; Draco made sure to take some of the potion Severus had given him to prevent sunburn, but Harry decided against taking the potion himself. They spent the rest of the day at the pool relaxing so that Draco could get to know Harry's friends. Draco and Ron had a few arguments and almost came to blows at one point, but Harry and Hermione pushed them both in the pool and Draco's argument with Ron was forgotten as they set about getting revenge on their partner's.

When the sun set the teens separated to get ready for dinner and Draco rushed to get into the shower before Harry, so the brunette lay down and dozed off as he waited his turn.

"Aaah!" Harry was awoken by a sharp slap on his back which alerted him to his sunburned skin; "Dray! That hurt; Merlin I feel terrible!" He groaned and buried his face in the pillows, ignoring Draco's low chuckle behind him.

"I told you to take the potion," Draco said, "The sun is a lot harsher here than it is back in England." Harry felt the bed move as Draco sat next to him and then sighed in relief when he felt cold water dripping onto his skin from Draco's hair. "I'll go get a topical potion to soothe the burn; you just wait here."

"Mmm nrt ghing enware," Harry mumbled into the pillow.

"I didn't quite catch that," Draco drawled, amused, and Harry lifted his head for a moment to reply; "I said: I'm not going anywhere. Moving causes too much pain." Draco chuckled again and then dropped a quick kiss on the back of Harry's neck before leaving in search of an after-sun potion.

Draco returned a few minutes later with two different bottles; one was full of a sparkling blue potion while the other had some sort of green salve. Draco set the blue potion down on the nightstand and opened the salve.

"Here; this should help," he sat on the bed next to Harry and began rubbing the salve into the brunette's skin, causing the Gryffindor to hiss in pain.

"I thought this was supposed to make it hurt less!" he protested, "It's actually burning more now!"

"It takes a few moments to work," Draco replied, "Stop squirming and lie still!" He pressed a hand into the small of Harry's back and the other boy whimpered slightly at the touch but stopped moving, so Draco resumed massaging the salve into his skin. The Slytherin began at Harry's shoulder's and slowly worked his way down the other boy's muscled back, easing tense muscles as the salve began to work.

"Oh, that feels so much better," Harry sighed blissfully as he raised his head from the pillow; he turned his head to the side so he could relax and enjoy his fiancés ministrations. "Hey!" He glared over his shoulder at Draco, who was beginning to lower Harry's swimming trunks, "My bum is not sunburned Dray; you're not allowed to take advantage of this-especially since my chest is still burning."

"Spoil all my fun then," Draco pouted but moved further down to start rubbing the salve onto the back of Harry's thighs.

A few minutes later he was finished with Harry's back and had the brunette roll over so he could apply the salve to the front of his body, this time working his way upwards from Harry's legs. When Draco got to the edge of Harry's swimming trunks the brunette opened one eye to give him a warning glare, but Draco just smirked and straddled his waist as he continued on to his stomach. He was just starting to massage the salve onto Harry's chest when there was a knock on their door.

"Come in!" Draco called and the door opened to reveal Hermione and Ron.

"Hey guys," Hermione greeted them, "we were worried when you didn't show up for dinner but-oh!" Her face turned red when she caught sight of Draco straddling Harry's waist and rubbing the salve onto his chest; she turned away from them and covered her eyes as she began making her way blindly to the door, "Sorry! We didn't mean to interrupt! Why did you tell us to come in?"

"Relax 'Mione," Harry laughed, "Draco was just rubbing some salve on my sunburn, that's all."

"Only because he won't let me do anything more," Draco muttered as he continued to rub the salve in, "Don't worry though, Hermione-I'm almost done, then Harry just needs to wait another ten minutes before taking a shower."

"I thought you two might have killed each other or something," Ron said, "Mum made us come check on you; it's going to take her a while to realize that you guys are really engaged. She should know better though-those bonding rings show that the engagement is real; maybe you should use your viewing sphere to show her the Promise Ceremony."

"I don't understand," Hermione interrupted the conversation, frowning as she turned around, "Why didn't you just give him the Sun Relief Potion? I see you have a bottle of it by the bed, and it works immediately."

"Wait, you brought back a potion that would work immediately and used this salve instead?" Harry demanded, "Why?"

"Because the potion would have stopped the pain, but you would have remained red for a few days," Draco replied, "With this salve it takes a little longer for the pain relief to kick in, but you skip the whole peeling phase and just get to keep your nice tan. Plus, this way I get to run my hands all over your body…" Draco ran his hands slowly down Harry's chest to illustrate his point and grunted when the brunette pushed him off the bed.

"Stop trying to grope me in front of my friends," Harry glared before turning his attention to his friends, "I think I actually just want to eat in here tonight; the sunburn doesn't hurt anymore, but I just don't feel like seeing a bunch of people."

"I understand Mate," Ron nodded, "I remember the summer before we started at Hogwarts I refused to take the sunblock potion and got a serious sunburn; Mum gave me some aloe lotion to ease the stinging a bit but she made me wait for two days before she would let me take the Sun Relief Potion."

"I should have done that," Draco said regretfully, sitting next to Harry on the bed again, "But I think Harry here has learned his lesson about not using the potion, haven't you L-Harry?"

"I'm not a child Draco," Harry scowled, "I've never been on a boat before; this is what we call a learning experience, so yes, now I know better than to stay by the pool all day without any sun block."

"Well I could have told you that much," Hermione said, exasperated as she turned to the door, "Ron and I had better get back and tell the others you guys are okay; are you just going to stay in here for the rest of the night?"

"Yes, I think so," Draco replied, "If you want we can all meet up for breakfast tomorrow-"

"No way," Harry interrupted, "Hermione gets up waaaay too early; why don't we set an actual time to meet up, like….nine tomorrow morning?"

"You mean she gets up earlier than nine?" Draco demanded, "During the holidays?"

"I get up at six every morning," Hermione replied, turning back to face the boys, "I like to get an early start, even if I am the only one awake; I can't get Ginny to get up that early for anything! However, if you insist on meeting later in the day, why don't we just meet at lunch? We can meet at the diner again and that way everyone can do what they want in the mornings; if you want to meet up earlier you can use this." She handed Draco and Harry each a black disk slightly bigger than a galleon. "The twins invented this and gave one to everybody; all you have to do is say who you are looking for and the locator will guide you to them-the only restriction is that they have to have a disk as well."

"Very useful," Draco nodded his approval, "Those two are actually very clever, I never realized it before."

"That reminds me, I still need to speak to them," Harry said, "but I suppose I should wait until the Equinox, since Sirius will be in control of all my accounts again when we bring him back."

"That sounds really exciting," Hermione said, "I wish I could be there, but since it's during school you two will just have to describe it all to me. I wonder how the exchange will happen; maybe-"

"Alright 'Mione; I think it's time for us to go," Ron grabbed Hermione's hand and pulled her to the door, "We'll see you two tomorrow." Harry and Draco called out good-night as the couple left and the boys were alone once again.

"Why don't you go take a shower and I'll order us some dinner," Draco suggested and Harry nodded his agreement.

"Okay," he agreed, climbing off the bed, "but no invading my shower this time; I should only be in there for a few minutes."

"You just spoil all my fun today!" Draco complained, but he had a smile on his face as he kissed Harry on the forehead, "Fine, I won't harass you in the shower tonight; now go on." He gave Harry a slap on the bum and Harry shook his head bemusedly as he headed for the shower.

By the time Harry finished his shower the food had arrived so they sat down to eat a quiet meal together-unfortunately it ended in a food fight when Harry accidentally knocked his wine glass over on Draco. When they finally called a truce both boys were exhausted and covered in a mixture of treacle tart, chocolate sauce and candy sprinkles.

"I can't believe you did this to me," Draco pouted as they made their way to the bathroom, "Now I need another shower!"

"You started it," Harry grinned, "I didn't mean to spill my wine on you, so you had no reason to throw the pudding at me-that's why I get the shower first!" He pushed Draco out of the way and ran to the bathroom, but Draco was right behind him and prevented him from slamming the door.

"I don't think so Lion," Draco said, pushing Harry further into the bathroom until the brunette's back was against the wall, "I demand you take a shower with me and wash my hair; it's only fair, since you're the one who poured the chocolate syrup over my head. Hmm, you have bit of pudding…right…there." Draco leaned down and licked the corner of Harry's mouth and the Gryffindor tangled a hand in his platinum locks, pressing their lips together in a fierce kiss.

"I suppose I can wash your hair," he pulled away, smiling as he reached into the shower to turn the water on, "but only if you return the favor." Draco lifted an eyebrow and smirked.

"But of course," he replied, vanishing their clothes with a wash of wandless magic and pulling his fiancé into the shower stall, "I'll wash anything you want me to." Harry's reply was lost as Draco captured his lips once again, and the boys stepped into the warm spray of water.

Once the boys finished their shower they climbed into bed, Harry's head resting on Draco's chest as it had the night before, and they both fell asleep within moments.

*******************************************************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note****************************************************************

**So, this chapter is a bit longer; hope no one's disappointed at not getting another shower scene, but I wasn't feeling inspired to write the details this time; the boys relationship should start progressing faster in the next couple of chapters though. I think right now Harry is still feeling a bit uncertain about the whole thing-even though he hasn't mentioned it-so he's taking it slow right now, but that won't last for too long. Thank you once again for the reviews!**


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

*****There is slash in this chapter, and also attempted non-con****

The rest of the cruise passed in much the same fashion as the first day; everyone would spend the morning relaxing, then the teens would meet up at the 50's diner for lunch-occasionally joined by the adults-and the teens would spend the afternoon as a group swimming, playing in the wizard's arcade, shopping, or just sitting around talking. In the evening the whole group would meet up for dinner and then sit on the sun deck to talk and relax before returning to their cabins.

Before Harry knew it the cruise was at an end and it was time to say good-bye to his friends; Neville's grandmother met them at the docks and she, Narcissa and Molly arranged to meet up in Diagon Alley a few days before school started so the teens could go shopping for their school things together, and then the groups went their separate ways.

"I am going to rest," Narcissa announced as soon as they entered the castle, "I enjoyed the cruise, but somehow being on vacation always makes me feel tired. You children will be fine on your own for lunch?"

"Of course Mother," Draco replied, "Don't worry about us-I'm sure we can find some way to occupy our time."

"And stay out of trouble," Narcissa said, "I don't want one of the house goblins to wake me up crying about you boys destroying things."

"I intend to finish my homework," Harry told her, "the Muggles kept all my things locked up so I haven't really had a chance to start on it."

"That's no fun," Draco complained, "but I suppose I shall help you so you can get it done quickly; we can work on it in my room-I still have all the books I used for my homework in there. Luna can join us for a while if she likes."

"Good," Narcissa smiled, "That should keep you all out of trouble for today at least, so I will go rest and see you at dinner." She started to exit the room only to almost run in to Severus.

"Welcome home," Severus said, nodding to the teens, "Draco? Your father is asking to see you; perhaps you should visit him for a few minutes."

"I suppose I should," Draco frowned, "I'm still angry at him, but he is my father and I'm about to send him through the Veil, so I guess I owe it to him."

"Do you want me to go with you?" Harry offered and Draco shook his head.

"No, I think it's better if you don't," he said, "Why don't you head on up to our room and I will meet you there in a little while."

"Okay," Harry agreed, "I'll see you in a bit; are you coming up with me Luna?"

"I want to take a shower first," Luna said, "and I need to mirror-call Neville so I will probably see you at supper, but I'll walk you to your room." She kissed Narcissa on the cheek before turning to Draco with a frown on her face, "Draco…" she paused and then shook her head uncertainly, "Just be careful. Come on Harry! 'Bye Severus!" She grabbed Harry by the hand and pulled him out of the room.

"What did she mean by that?" Draco demanded, "It's not like Father will do anything to me, right?"

"I do not believe he will hurt you," Severus replied, "but he may attempt to manipulate you; just be wary around him."

"If he tries anything leave immediately," Narcissa added, "When the Dark Lord was at his strongest before your father did many things that…I doubt he will hurt you since you are his heir, but he has been acting very strange lately, very caught up in earning the Dark Lord's favor; if he feels that he can use you to get that favor he may do anything." She gave her son a brief kiss on the forehead before turning to Severus, "I'm going to rest Severus; will we see you at dinner?"

"Of course; I have a few more books I want to look at again before we talk," Severus said before following Narcissa out of the room and then Draco headed down to the dungeons to visit his father.

"I was wondering if you would have the courage to come in here," Lucius said by way of greeting when Draco entered the room, "I'm surprised, after all it is your fault I'm here." He lounged in an intricate wooded chair that was reminiscent of his former throne and gestured to a smaller chair in front of him. "Sit."

"No Father, it's your own fault you're here," Draco returned, "No one told you to be an oath breaker; is having Harry for a son-in-law really worse than being imprisoned and de-throned?"

"Yes," Lucius hissed, "Harry Potter is everything we stand against! He is a half-blood who defeated the Dark Lord through a chance of fate when he was a baby, and he is Dumbledore's little fool! For almost six years he has been your rival! Every summer you would tell me how Potter was ruining your life and how he was so spoiled and-"

"That was all for your benefit Father, let me assure you," Draco interrupted, "I haven't hated Harry since second year but I never thought he would be interested in me so I said and did what I thought what make you happy; now that I have the chance to make myself happy I'm taking it and there is nothing you can do about it." Father and son glared at each other for a moment before Lucius looked away in disgust.

"Fine," Lucius said with a forced calm, "Let us not discuss this now; we may not have another chance to talk before your mother enacts whatever punishment she sees fitting. Do you have any idea what she has planned son?" Draco looked at him warily for a moment before finally taking the seat offered, as well as fixing himself a cup of tea from the set on the table between them.

"Mother has decided that it is time to bring Cousin Sirius back from the veil," Draco replied, "Originally we would have had to wait until Harry and my bonding is complete, but since we have you to trade we can bring him back sooner; Mother figures a few years in the veil ought to calm your temper some and help you see the error of your ways." Draco smirked as his father gaped at him in astonishment.

"You can't be serious," he finally said, "Your mother wants to send me through the veil in exchange for that blood traitor? No! There is absolutely no way I will allow this to happen!"

"It's not permanent," Draco said drily, "Mother said there is a way to rig up communication mirrors so that you can still talk to us if you wish; myself, Mother and Severus are the only people you will be able to contact however. Look on the bright side-with Harry and I working together Tom-you know him as the Dark Lord-will probably be dead within a year-perhaps even by Christmas-so you may not be there for long at all."

"I will speak to Narcissa about this," Lucius glowered, "I have important matters to attend to, so this cannot happen! Garblov!" He summoned a goblin who entered a few moments later; "Tell Queen Narcissa that I want to see her immed-no, that I want to see her after dinner; I don't want my time with my son to be interrupted."

"Yes, Master Lucius," Garblov bowed before leaving; Lucius may not be king any longer, but the goblins still had to take orders from him.

"So, Draco tell me-what have you been up to over the past week or so?" Lucius deliberately changed the subject, "Severus mentioned something about a cruise?"

"Yes," Draco replied, "Mother, Harry, Luna and I joined the Weasley's and Neville Longbottom on a wizarding cruise through the Bahamas. It was quite fun actually, and the Weasley twins are very smart. We went to a dinner show that you would have really enjoyed…"

"Hey Dray," Harry looked up from where he was working on his Transfiguration essay as Draco entered the room two hours later, "How was the talk with your father?"

"How do you think it was?" Draco scowled as he closed and locked the door, "Lucius is in the dungeons and it's all my fault."

"It's not your fault," Harry protested, closing his book and walking over to where Draco was standing by the bed, "Lucius mad his own choices and-"

"You're right," Draco interrupted, "It isn't my fault-at least not completely; it's your fault as well." He stepped forward and grabbed a startled Harry by the wrist; "If you hadn't called on me to take away your worthless cousin none of this ever would have happened, so you're the one who got us into this mess."

"You're hurting me Draco," Harry looked down at where the blonde was clutching his wrist and then looked up to meet steel-grey eyes; Draco's eyes were far colder than Harry had ever seen them, even when they were rivals at school. "Draco, what are you doing? Let me go. I know you're upset about your father but that doesn't give you the right to-Hey!" He cried out in surprise as Draco shoved him, causing him to fall backwards onto the bed; within moments Draco was straddling him and holding the brunette's wrists above his head.

"I have every right," Draco sneered, pointing his wand at Harry's face, "You lost the labyrinth so according to the contract you are mine; that means I can do whatever I want to you. Incarcerous." Strands of ropes shot out of the wand and wrapped themselves around Harry's wrists, binding him to the bed and leaving Draco's hands free. "I even proposed so that you could have some illusion of having a choice, but then you want to act all shy and virginal, ha! The Great Harry Potter a virgin-I doubt that! No matter though, tonight I'm going to take what I want from you, just as I should have done before." He ripped Harry's shirt down the front, ignoring the other boy's struggles.

"Stop this!" Harry cried, "You can't do this to me! Ow!" He looked up at Draco with wide eyes when the blonde back-handed him.

"Shut up whore," Draco ordered and Harry's mouth snapped shut, "I'm going to give you what you deserve, and you're going to take it-I might even let you enjoy it if you stop fighting me." He waited a moment and then smirked when Harry didn't say anything. "That's better; it's time you learned your place Potter-beneath me." His hands slid down and quickly unbuttoned Harry's shorts before sliding them off and throwing them over to the side; the Slytherin sat back on his heels and eyed his prisoner with a satisfied expression. "Much better slut. Now, let's see how you enjoy this…" Draco reached down and grabbed Harry's flaccid cock in a strong grip, making the brunette wince before trailing his hand between his captive's legs and circling his opening with a single finger.

"Draco, please!" Harry protested, "Don't do this! We can talk about it! I-I we don't have to trade your father for Sirius; please! You don't have to do this!"

"Oh, but I want to do this," Draco purred, "Ready Potter?" Without waiting for a response Draco breached Harry's puckered ring with his index finger, shoving it completely in and making Harry cry out in pain; "I love seeing your eyes bright and shiny with tears; it makes me impatient for what's coming next." He thrust his finger in and out a few times before adding a second finger, not giving Harry enough time to adjust. "Hmmm…all that smooth unblemished skin is a crime; if I'm going to make you mine I should leave my mark, don't you agree?" He trailed a hand down the side of Harry's neck before leaning in to press his lips to the Gryffindor's neck.

"Wait-what?" Harry jerked his head away, his voice slightly shaking from the pain, "Who are you? Where's Draco?" Draco sat up and raised an eyebrow.

"Have you gone mad Potter?" he sneered, thrusting his fingers in harder and making Harry wince again, "I am Draco; maybe you need new glasses. I think that's enough preparation." He gave a final hard thrust before removing his fingers and leering down at the brunette, "Now, fiancé of mine, I am going to make you completely mine."

"No," Harry shook his head, "I'm not yours, and never will be. I knew something was off when you grabbed my wrist like that, and then you had the wrong wand…and Draco can use wandless and non-verbal spells, which he loves to show off so he never would have said that incarcerous spell out loud, which reminds me." The false Draco watched in astonishment as the ropes around Harry's wrists vanished and moments later he found himself blasted back into the wall where he was unable to move. "I can do wandless and non-verbal spells too," Harry said conversationally as he pulled his wand out of the top drawer of the nightstand, "Draco and I have been working on it together; I've found that I have a little more power with a wand though, so I still like to keep mine close by." He glared at the imposter while the fresh tears continued to slide slowly down his face.

"Good for you Potter," the false Draco snarled, "so now what are you going to do?"

"Now? Now I am going to find out who you are," Harry replied, pointing his wand between the blonde's forehead; then he frowned, "Actually, first I'm going to put something on." He walked over to the armoire and pulled on a silk green bathrobe, "So…who are you, and what did you do to Draco?"

"Draco is fine," the blonde said, "and if you can't figure out who I am I'm certainly not going to tell you."

"Of course," Harry nodded, "You must be Lucius, which means Draco is in the dungeons. Well, I know how to get this fixed. Tillie!" Narcissa's house elf popped in at his call.

"Yes Master Harry?" she bowed, "How can Tillie be serving-Master Harry!" She cried out in astonishment as she caught sight of Lucius bound to the door, "What is you doing to Master Draco? You is to be letting him down at once or I is getting Mistress!"

"Please do," Harry said, "That's why I called you in here; I need you to have Queen Narcissa and Severus Snape come up here immediately to help Draco. Please hurry!" Tillie looked confused but bowed none-the-less and popped out, returning moments later with both Narcissa and Severus.

"Harry? What's going on?" Narcissa asked, "Why do you have my son bound to the wall?"

"That's actually not your son," Harry replied, "Isn't that right Lucius?"

"Let me down from here Severus," the disguised Lucius ordered, "I managed to get out of that dungeon, and now I need you to get me to our lord so I can continue serving him. You, Narcissa, are going to regret the day you chose that half-blood over me."

"I'm sorry Lucius," Severus replied silkily, "but I can't let you down or take you from this realm; I swore an oath to abide by the laws of the realm while I am here. Perhaps he should be let down though, Narcissa?"

"Not yet," Narcissa replied, and Harry could hear a fine tremor of anger in her voice, "First I want to make sure my son is safe. Tillie? Go to the dungeons and bring my son back up here; he may look like Lucius."

"Yes Mistress!" Tillie squeaked and popped out. The room was silent for a few moments until Tillie returned with a white-faced Draco.

"You!" Draco shouted, stalking over to his father and punching him, "How dare you! If you hurt him…"

"Draco!" Harry cried, and the blonde spun around, his expression softening as he caught sight of the brunette, "It's okay Draco-he didn't do anything to me. Well, he didn't do much to me before I remembered I could do wandless magic." Draco shook his head smiling slightly until he noticed Harry wearing the bathrobe and then he promptly drew his fiancé over to the far side of the room so they could have some privacy.

"Harry," he began in a warning voice, "Why are you wearing a bathrobe? What did he do to you?" He grabbed Harry by the shoulders, forcing the brunette to look him in the eyes.

"He…I thought he was you," Harry said softly, "He came in acting upset, and then said it was my fault Lucius was in the dungeons and he…pushed me on the bed and…"

"You can tell me Lion," Draco said, "I need to know what he did, okay?" Harry nodded before continuing, speaking quickly so he could get it over with.

"He pushed me on the bed and used incarcerous to bind my wrists, then he took off my clothes and…" here he faltered again, looking down in embarrassment, "He put two fingers inside me and it hurt really badly Dray…I'm sorry I thought it was you; then he mentioned wanting to leave a mark because I didn't have any, but I do already have a mark-"

"The one that I glamoured so only I can see it," Draco said, "Now I'm glad I agreed to do the glamour for you." He pulled Harry into a hug and the brunette began to relax against him, "So what happened after you realized he wasn't me?"

"Well, I started thinking about all the other things that had been off since you-he-walked in the door," Harry continued, "and I realized that he didn't use a non-verbal or wandless spell-and he had the wrong wand. When I thought it was you hurting me…" he paused again, but continued, reassured when Draco kissed the top of his head, "…I was too stunned to really fight back. When I thought about you doing wandless magic I remembered that I could do it too, so I used it to escape and trap him against the wall, then I put on this robe and called Tillie to get your mom and Severus."

"Thank you for telling me Lion," Draco said softly, "Are you still sore?" Harry buried his face in Draco's chest and nodded. "Okay; I'll get Uncle Sev to give us something. Why don't you wait here while I tell Mother what happened-unless you want to tell her?"

"No," Harry pulled away, "Please, you tell her; I don't want to have to go over it again."

"Okay; I'll be right back Lion." Draco kissed him on the forehead and then walked over to join his mother and Severus. Harry could tell that Draco was explaining what had happened by the horrified gasp that Narcissa let out and the way Severus looked at him in shock before glaring at Lucius. For his part, Harry tried to avoid looking at anyone in the room and instead un-rolled the essay he had been working on before Draco-no, Lucius-had interrupted him. After a few moments Draco came back over and Harry had to force himself not to flinch when the blonde put a hand on his shoulder.

"Sorry," Harry said ashamedly, "It's just…"

"You thought he was me," Draco said softly, "I understand, and it's not your fault. Mother has decided on a punishment for Lucius; instead of staying in the dungeon until the equinox he will be put in the Nightmare Room."

"The Nightmare Room?" Harry questioned, "Is that the one I went through when all my friends didn't want me?"

"Yes," Draco said, "If you hadn't seen through the illusions then I would have come in after you before too long; less than an hour in that room is a challenge-any longer than that and it becomes a punishment."

"That room will drive him mad if he's in it for a month!" Harry protested, "I hate him for what he did to me, but he's still your father and-"

"Shush," Draco placed a finger on his lips, "Don't worry-he won't be kept in there continuously for the whole month, but that isn't something you need to worry about; Mother will take care of it." Narcissa and Severus chose that moment to join the boys.

"Oh Harry!" Narcissa cried, pulling him into a hug, "I'm so sorry for what he did but I will make sure he gets punished for it! I'm going to take him out of here right now; if you don't feel like coming down for dinner I'll understand, but I hope you come downstairs. Oh, and what happened up here will never leave this room, so you don't have to worry about other people finding out." She gave Harry a quick kiss on the forehead and then hurriedly left the room, pausing for just a moment to levitate Lucius out of the room before her.

"She didn't want you to see her cry," Severus informed him, "I'm sorry for what Lucius did, and I guarantee you that he won't be trying something like that again. I have a salve for you to use, I will just have to get it out of my rooms; it would be best if you take a shower before using it."

"Okay," Harry said softly, "Thank you Severus." He was startled when the Potions Master laid a hand on his shoulder.

"I'd do the same for anyone that this happened to," Severus replied, "but that it happened to you and I couldn't prevent it…Well, let's just say Lucius will get exactly what he deserves. I know you may need some time, but even if you decide not to eat dinner with the rest of us I need you and Draco both to meet me in the blue study after dinner to discuss something very important."

"Okay," Harry agreed, "I'll probably be down for dinner too; I'm going to go take my shower now. Draco? When he brings the salve will you bring it into the bathroom for me?"

"Of course," Draco replied, kissing him on the forehead, "Go take your shower." Harry gave him a small smile and then headed to the bathroom where he immediately turned the water on as hot as he could stand it before climbing in under the harsh spray.

A few minutes later the door opened and he heard Draco come in.

"Are you okay in there Lion?" Draco asked, "I brought the salve, but Uncle Sev said it would be better to have help applying it, if you're okay with it." Harry opened the shower door and stuck his head out to see Draco standing uncomfortably by the sink, which made him smile; any other time Draco would have been right there in the shower with him, doing things to make him blush…he frowned as he realized that he actually wanted Draco to join him in the shower.

"I think that should be okay," Harry replied before asking in an innocent voice, "Did Sev mention anything about whether or not water will make it less effective?"

"Hmm…no he said that water won't hurt it at all," Draco replied, "Why?"

"Because I was thinking you could join me," Harry grinned at him, "Think you feel up for a shower?"

"Always," Draco grinned back as he unbuttoned his shirt and took it off; he glanced at Harry before removing his pants, "Are you sure about this? I don't want to-"

"I'm sure," Harry interrupted, "Now hurry up before I change my mind; and don't forget the salve!" Harry moved back so he was standing fully in the shower and Draco hurriedly removed the rest of his clothing before grabbing the salve and joining his fiancé.

When he stepped into the shower Draco set the jar down and stepped under the spray of water behind Harry to wrap his arms around the brunette, pressing a soft kiss to the side of his neck. Harry responded by tilting his head back further and reaching back to wrap an arm around Draco's neck, pulling the blonde in for a kiss. Draco made sure to keep the kiss sweet and gentle as Harry turned around in his arms before maneuvering them until the Gryffindor's back was pressed against the tile wall.

"Do you trust me Harry?" Draco asked softly and Harry nodded.

"Of course," he responded, then, "Why? What are you planning?" He glared suspiciously at Draco and the blonde laughed before pressing another kiss to his lips.

"Nothing bad, I promise," Draco assured him, "Just relax and let me make you feel good." He trailed his hands slowly down Harry's chest as he captured Harry's lips in a kiss once more. His fingers trailed teasingly across Harry's nipples and he tweaked them gently, drawing a small gasp from Harry, before continuing down until he wrapped one elegant hand around Harry's erection, making Harry moan in pleasure.

Draco drew back from the kiss and his lips followed the same path of his hands until his was kneeling in front of Harry, his mouth on level with the brunette's cock. He blew a breath of warm air on it before taking Harry's entire length in his mouth and making the brunette cry out as he lifted his hips forward. This didn't faze Draco in the slightest as the boys had spent a lot of time over the past two weeks trading sexual favors, so he just continued licking and suck on the brunette's cock until Harry reached down to tangle his hands in platinum locks and Draco knew he was close, so he pulled back, much to Harry's displeasure.

"Reach over to the shelf next to you and hand me the jar of salve," Draco said, and Harry obeyed hesitantly, "Don't worry; I won't hurt you lion. If it is too uncomfortable just tell me and I'll stop, okay?"

"Okay," Harry agreed and then leaned his head back against the wall, closing his eyes as Draco engulfed his cock once again. Draco quickly resumed his earlier ministrations as he coated the fingers of one hand with the salve and when he felt Harry getting close to the edge again he trailed one long finger around the other boys puckered hole before carefully pushing the tip of his finger past the first tight ring of muscles. Harry let out a small hiss at the sting but made no other protests and soon relaxed enough for Draco to slowly slide his finger the rest of the way in. Draco began slowly pumping his finger in and out of Harry's tight hole, making sure to give him enough time to adjust to one finger before slipping the second one in.

"Ah! Draco!" Harry gasped at the pain and bucked his hips, his fingers tightening in Draco's hair as the blonde began to scissor his fingers, stretching him out further. Harry slowly adjusted to the intrusion and when he began bucking his hips to the thrusts of Draco's fingers the blonde slipped a third finger in; this time Harry didn't even acknowledge the pain but merely moaned at the sensation. He whimpered slightly when Draco released his erection with an audible pop, but he didn't have long to worry about it as the Slytherin's fingers brushed over something that sent waves of pleasure through him.

"Draco…Merlin!" Harry gasped, "What was that?"

"What was what?" Draco asked innocently before thrusting his fingers in and hitting the other boys prostate, "This?"

"Oh, yes!" Harry moaned, "Please!" Draco smirked as he continued pumping his fingers in and out of Harry's tight hole, hitting his sweet spot with deadly precision each time; after a few moments of this the blonde leaned forward and took Harry's cock in his mouth was more, taking in as much as he could before swallowing. This proved to be too much stimulation at one time for Harry, and he found himself helplessly taken by orgasm; he tighten his grip on the platinum locks again and pumped his hips forward, forcing Draco to take all of his length in his mouth, crying out the blondes name as he gave himself over to pleasure. "Draco!"

When the orgasm had finally passed Harry sank weakly to his knees in front of Draco and allowed the blonde to pull him into a kiss. After a few minutes Harry got his breath back and looked Draco in the eye.

"I guess now you want your turn, right Dragon?"

"You don't have to," Draco replied, "This was for you tonight; you don't have do anything." He rose to his feet pulling the brunette with him and Harry leaned forward to give him a sweet kiss before responding; "But maybe I want to repay you." Without further ado Harry sank to his knees in front of the blonde and took the tip of Draco's erection in his mouth, licking it softly and making Draco's breath catch in his throat. Harry pressed his hands against Draco's hips to keep the blonde still and then slowly slid his mouth down around his cock until he had the entire length in his mouth and swallowed, drawing out a soft moan from the blonde. Harry drew back a little and then licked around the tip of Draco's erection, pressing his tongue to the slit at the top and tasting the drop of precum that rested there.

"Harry; please!" Draco moaned, "I'm so hard Lion! I love the feel of your hot mouth around my hard cock; love the sight of you kneeling in front of me…" He trailed off into a moan as Harry engulfed him fully once more and tangled his fingers in his fiancés dark locks; "Just a little more Luv…almost…" Harry moved his head faster and sucked harder until Draco reached his orgasm, and Harry made sure to swallow every drop of his lover's seed as the blonde cried out his name. When he had his breath back Draco pulled Harry to his feet once more and gave him a soul searing kiss.

"I love you Harry," He whispered against the other boy's mouth.

"Mmm…I love you too," Harry replied, "Of course, I'll love you even more if you wash my hair."

"You have gotten spoiled since we started showering together," Draco said drily, "But I suppose I can do it. Turn around and hand me the shampoo."

"Draco?" Harry said softly.

"Yes Lion?" Draco looked at him curiously; the two were lying in bed after their shower, both on their sides and facing one another.

"Are you mad that we're taking things a little slow?" Harry asked, "I know you must be used to having…more."

"No, I'm not mad," Draco replied, "I really don't have much more experience than you; I have fooled around with Blaise a little in the past, but I haven't had sex with anybody, and I've actually never had more than a handjob before. Yes, I would like to do more with you, but I'm willing to wait until you're ready."

"If you do get frustrated though, you'll tell me, right?" Harry persisted, "I don't want you to let it go until you just can't wait anymore and-"

"My father said something to make you feel uncertain, didn't he?" Draco scowled, "Harry, everything he said to you was a lie; I am perfectly happy with the way things are going right now. Why would I complain? I have the man I love in bed with me when I never thought I would have the chance to be with you, so you have nothing to worry about, okay?"

"Okay," Harry responded with a small smile as he scooted closer to Draco and lay his head on the blonde's chest. "'Night Draco."

"Good night Lion," Draco responded, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. Within moments Harry had fallen asleep, but Draco lay awake a while longer, seething as he thought about what his father had done-and especially what he had tried to do. He was amazed that Harry didn't seem to hold a grudge against him even though his father had taken his form to torment his fiancé, and he felt that his father deserved to suffer for his actions; after what he did to Harry Draco didn't think he would ever be able to forgive Lucius. Draco let out a soft sigh and pressed another kiss to the top of Harry's head before closing his eyes and drifting off to sleep.

********************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note**************************************************************************************** So…very evil Lucius. I don't really know how it happened; I had intended for Luci to be bad but redeemable, but he just didn't want to cooperate, and now I don't know if I will be able to redeem him at the end of the story. Also, next time I write a steamy scene I will try to have to take place in the bathroom instead of the shower; I just felt that the shower would work better this time since Lucius had attacked Harry on the bed. Thank you once again to everyone who reviewed, and please continue to tell me what you think!**


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

After Lucius' attempted rape of Harry Narcissa felt that her future son-in-law had had enough trauma and talked Severus into postponing the talk with the boys. They had gone to Diagon Alley two days ago and met up with the Weasley's, Hermione and Neville so the kids could go school shopping and now it was the August 30th, Luna was at her father's for the night, and the boys would be catching the school train in the morning.

"He deserves to know Narcissa," Severus said as they stood outside the dining room talking, "We've had this discussion before, and we both agreed that this is for the best."

"I know," Narcissa sighed, "I just can't help but feel that he shouldn't have to worry about it; don't you think he has enough on his plate?"

"I don't think Harry would forgive us easily if we kept this information from him," Severus countered, "I put it off so that he could enjoy his summer, but I need to leave after dinner and Harry needs to know what he is up against; I have a feeling that Dumbledore is going to try and use this information to get Harry to listen to him again and drive a wedge between him and Draco."

"Very well," Narcissa agreed, "We will talk to them after dinner." Severus bowed his head slightly and then opened the door to the dining room to allow Narcissa to enter the room before him. Harry and Draco were already seated at the table, discussing Quidditch tactics and arguing good-naturedly over the upcoming school season.

"Slytherin hasn't won a match against us in five years," Harry said, "What makes you think this year will be any different?"

"Okay boys," Narcissa spoke up before Draco could reply, "You know my rule; no Quidditch talk at the dinner table."

"Or the breakfast table, lunch table and any other time she would have to listen to it," Draco teased, "Mother hates Quidditch talk, although she enjoys watching the matches. So Mother, what are you going to do once we're gone?"

"I will be managing your father's businesses," Narcissa replied, "Which may take some time to get in order and I will also be changing the wards around the manor so that the Dark Lord and his followers can't use it any longer, but I think I will spend most of my time in the realm; once the Dark Lord realizes that Lucius is truly missing and that I am not loyal to him he will most likely target me. That reminds me," she fixed both boys with a hard stare, "you two stay out of trouble this year; Molly has told me about some of the trouble you've gotten into in the past Harry-no wandering around the Forbidden Forest and no using the Marauder's Map to go to Hogsmeade; I really should have you leave it here, but it may be helpful if Dumbledore attempts anything."

"I'll be careful, but I can't make any promises," Harry said, "After all, most of the danger I faced came from school itself-I had three teachers try to kill me, even though Remus couldn't control himself at the time, one teacher tried to erase my memory, and last year Umbridge scarred me for life." He absently rubbed at the scars from the blood quill he had been forced to use in detention.

"Yes, well I don't believe you will have that sort of problem this year," Severus said, "In fact, I'm sure you will enjoy the new Defense teachers."

"Teachers?" Draco questioned and Severus nodded.

"Yes, we will have two Defense teachers this year," Severus confirmed, "One will handle teaching you about dangerous creatures-"

"Which means we won't miss Magical Creatures," Draco muttered and Harry elbowed him sharply.

"-and the other will go over curses and spells," Severus continued, "however you will have to wait until school starts to find out more."

"It's Bill and Charlie, right?" Harry asked, "I wondered why they were home; they don't normally get to come home too often." He turned to Draco, "Bill is a curse breaker for Gringotts and Charlie is a dragon tamer; he's usually in Romania, but he was here a couple years ago for the first task of the Tri-wizard tournament."

"This should be interesting at least," Draco said, "Maybe we can start a dueling club again."

"Why? So you can try to cheat?" Harry questioned, "How surprised were you when I actually spoke to the snake?" Draco glared at him and refused to answer, focusing instead on his dinner.

The rest of the meal passed quietly, but as they were standing up to leave Severus stopped them.

"Narcissa and I want to talk to you before you go upstairs," he said, "We're going to the blue study." He swept out of the room with Narcissa by his side, leaving the two boys to follow. Once they were all sitting down-Narcissa and Severus in separate chairs and Harry sitting on the arm of Draco's chair-Severus got right to the point.

"Do you remember a few weeks ago when Dumbledore attacked you Harry?" Severus began, "He said that the scar and the ability to speak parseltongue were not the only marks the Dark Lord left on you."

"I remember," Harry frowned, "You found out what he meant?"

"Yes," Severus nodded, "I have been doing research ever since that afternoon, and-put together with some other conversations I have overheard-I know what he was referring to. Have you ever heard of a horcrux?" Harry frowned again and shook his head, but Draco paled visibly upon hearing the word.

"A horcrux is very dark magic," Draco said, "It's an object that is used to hold part of a person's soul so that if they suffer a life-threatening injury they won't die; in order to create one you have to rip your soul apart…commit murder."

"That's terrible!" Harry said, "And Voldemort did this?"

"Yes," Severus confirmed, "He created six horcruxes-or I should say he _intentionally_ created six horcruxes, and a seventh horcrux was created by accident; it happened on the night of you parent's deaths Harry." Fathomless black eyes met confused green as Severus waited for Harry to make the connection, but he didn't get the chance.

"No," Draco said, pulling a startled Harry off the arm of the chair and into his lap, "You're wrong Severus; he can't be a horcrux! If he's a horcrux that means that the Dark Lord won't die as long as Harry lives! I won't let you kill him!"

"What?" Harry cried, "I'm a horcrux?" He frowned thoughtfully for a moment, "So that's why I can sometimes see what Voldemort's doing and feel his emotions…he doesn't know about it though, does he?"

"No," Severus shook his head, "If he knew you held a part of his soul within you he would not try to kill you; he would most likely imprison you to keep his soul safe. As for killing Harry, I have no intention of allowing that to happen." He frowned at his godson who had the grace to blush, "I have been looking into ways of destroying the soul without actually damaging the vessel, and I think I may be able to create a potion, but I will need to do a lot more research. I don't want you boys to worry, but I felt that you needed to be informed in case Dumbledore tries to use the information against you."

"Now that you are considered an adult by the ministry he may try to have you help him hunt down the other horcruxes," Narcissa said, "You can, of course make your own decisions-at least until we bring Sirius back-but I don't want you to do it; I don't trust Dumbledore to keep you safe."

"I have no intention of going anywhere with him," Harry assured her, "but if I have an opportunity to get rid of one of those things, isn't it my responsibility-"

"No," Draco interrupted, "We're only sixteen so it isn't your responsibility to do anything, except maybe tell an adult what you find out. Dumbledore already tried to kill you once and he might try it again. I really don't think you should even go to his office by yourself."

"I agree," Narcissa said, "And I also thought of something else;" she pulled out a piece of parchment and held it out to Harry, "I had our solicitor draw this up and passed it on to Nagnok who read it and approved everything in it; this is a betrothal contract which would allow you and Draco to have your own rooms in the school. Since you have been declared and adult by the ministry you can sign this yourself, and it will remain valid even when Sirius comes back."

"Okay," Harry agreed as he read through the contract; it basically said that he and Draco would share equally in all of their properties, but that Harry would be able to name the heir to the Potter and Peverell fortunes while Draco would name the heir to the Malfoy fortune and choose the successor in the goblin realm, and they would have to agree on the heir to the Black fortunes. "I don't see any problem with this, and we can make changes before we actually bond if we need to, right?"

"That's correct," Narcissa replied, smiling as Harry signed the parchment, "And now Dumbledore will have less of a chance to try and get you alone." She took the contract back from Harry and duplicated it with a charm, handing the copy back to him; "When you tell the headmaster that you want your own rooms, just show him this."

"I would recommend showing it to Minerva first," Severus suggested, "She may not like it either, but Minerva is a stickler for the rules and she will support you in making sure that Albus doesn't try to forbid you from sharing the room." The boys nodded and Harry slid off of Draco's lap to perch on the arm of the chair again.

"Good," Narcissa said, "Now, are you boys packed for tomorrow? We have to leave early so we can use the portal to get to Severus' house and then Floo to the platform, and I'm not going to let Tillie pack for you this time."

"I have a few more things to pack," Harry said and Draco nodded his agreement as they stood up, "What time are we leaving?"

"We need to be up by six," Narcissa replied, "That's just to make sure we have enough time for everything; also six o'clock here will be about nine o'clock there, so we should have just enough time to get ready. Why don't you boys go finish packing?" The boys agreed and stepped up to give Narcissa a kiss on the cheek before heading upstairs to finish packing their belongings.

The next morning wasn't nearly as rushed as Harry was used to from when he was staying with the Weasley's; only having two students to worry about made things a lot simpler, Harry noted as the got ready to leave. It only took them an hour to eat breakfast and finish getting ready, so now they were already at Severus' house and it was ten a.m.

"You're sure you have everything?" Narcissa asked and Harry and Draco nodded, "Very well, but I won't be sending anything to the school for you; if you forgot anything it will just have to wait until you come back for the equinox."

"I just wish we didn't have to take the Floo," Harry commented, "Flooing and port keying-I hate 'em both! Too bad we can't apparate…don't you get some sort of diplomatic immunity for that?"

"I don't need diplomatic immunity, as I am of age," Narcissa replied with a smile, "and besides-you can't apparate to Platform 9 ¾; there are anti-apparition wards in place just like Hogwarts. That reminds me; can I hold your rings?" Harry and Draco both took off their engagement rings and handed them to Narcissa who waved her wand and said an incantation before handing them back. "I have turned them into portkeys so if you are ever in danger simply touch the crest on the ring and say "Sev" and the rings will bring you back here; just don't tell Severus what the activation word is or he may decide to kill me." Harry and Draco grinned at this as they replaced their rings, and then it was time to go.

On September first there were so many families travelling to Platform 9 ¾ that only a few were able to use the Floo, and each group had a five minute window to step through; their time-slot was at 10:05, so it was time to go. Draco went through first so that he was able to catch a stumbling Harry, and Narcissa came through behind them, making Harry marvel at how they didn't have any ashes on their clothing.

"It's a charm," Draco informed him, "which I will be certain to cast for you the next time we have to Floo anywhere; I don't see how you're such a mess!" The brunette was somehow covered in ashes from head-to-toe; even the youngest wizarding children that came out of the fireplace after them weren't as thoroughly covered.

"The fireplaces are out to get me," Harry responded glumly as a laughing Narcissa cast a few cleansing charms on him until he skin and clothing were completely spotless.

"There you go Harry," she smiled, "Good as new! Now, I suppose you two are eager to get on the train and find your friends, and I right?"

"We do need to board soon so that we can get a good compartment," Draco replied, "but you know I will miss you Mother; I worry about you being there alone with Father."

"You needn't worry about me," Narcissa replied as she gave her son a hug, "I have no intention of going near him until you two come back for the ceremony." She gave Draco a kiss on the forehead and then pulled Harry into an equally warm hug. "Now, you two promised to stay out of trouble and you had better keep that promise! Draco darling, you'll have to keep a close eye on Harry if his past years at school are anything to go by."

"Hey!" Harry cried indignantly, "It's not like I go looking for trouble; it just kind of finds me. Well, I guess I _might_ have intentionally put myself in danger last year, but I was trying to save Sirius; you can't expect me to sit idly by when people I love are in danger!"

"No, but we _can_ expect you to get help," Draco retorted, "and by help I mean an experienced adult-not a bunch of your friends who learned all of their spells from you." Harry blushed muttering; "I'll bet they know more than the students who didn't come to my defense training." Draco and Narcissa both laughed at this, causing Harry to pout.

"I'm sure you're right Harry dear," Narcissa consoled him, "however, teachers would have probably been more helpful and-what's more-you would have stayed safe at the school while they investigated the trouble at the ministry." Draco was watching Harry's face carefully so he saw the flash of rebellion at that, but Narcissa missed it completely as she was looking at her watch. "Well boys, the train leaves in half an hour; you had better get on board so that you don't have to rush. Owl me by the end of the week?"

"Of course Mother," Draco replied and Harry rapidly agreed as they both leaned in to kiss her cheek good-bye; "We'll see you in a few weeks." With a final wave Harry and Draco carried their trunks and their owls over to the train, walking until they found two empty compartments across from one another at the back.

"I'll save one and you save the other," Harry suggested," Then once some of our friends get here we can move to sit together."

"That sounds like a plan," Draco nodded, "I need to talk to Pansy, Blaise and Theo anyway; I haven't dared to owl them over the summer because I don't know how loyal their parents are to "Tommy", so I should probably speak to them alone." He gave his fiancé a quick kiss on the lips, ignoring the startled gasps from the other students in the train corridor, before the boy's headed to separate compartments to wait for their friends.

About five minutes later Pansy's head poked into the compartment and she scowled at Harry before quickly retreating without saying a word, although Harry caught sight of Blaise's amused grin behind her as the dark-haired boy gave him a nod before the compartment door closed. Seconds later he heard Pansy squeal as she obviously located Draco, but he didn't have time to focus on that as Neville and Luna entered his compartment at the same time and the three traded greetings. A few minutes later Ron, Hermione and Ginny appeared, and everyone arranged themselves to get comfortable.

"I have to tell you guys something really important," Harry said once the train started moving, "but I don't know if the train is the right place, because Dumbledore can't know that I have this information and-" he snapped his mouth shut as the compartment door opened to reveal Pansy once again, and the Slytherin girl walked inside until she was directly in front of Harry.

"If you ever hurt him in anyway," she began, but Harry held up a hand to stop her.

"Yes, yes," he sighed, "You'll kill me, torture me, make sure I can never use my cock again, etc., etc.; I heard it all when Hermione was threatening Draco, and I assume the same threats apply to me. Well, I have no intention of hurting Draco; we've moved on from the past and this engagement is as real to me as it is to him. Satisfied?" Pansy glared at him for a moment before nodding and extending her hand.

"Very well," she said, "If you are engaged to my best friend I suppose we should start getting along; call me Pansy."

"Harry," he replied, shaking her hand, "and you know Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Neville and Luna."

"Of course," Pansy nodded, "and this is Blaise," she gestured to the dark-haired boy who appeared behind her, "and that's Theo." Standing behind Blaise was a studious looking boy who gave Harry and his friends a curt nod before returning to the other compartment. "Draco wanted me to ask you to come join us Harry; at some point I imagine we should mingle and get to know one another, but these compartments really aren't big enough."

"I'll go with Harry so he isn't alone with the snakes," Ginny offered eagerly, "Is Blaise seeing anyone?"

"That's okay Gin," Harry replied, "I don't have a problem with snakes; after all, I can speak their language." Hermione frowned at the joke about being a Parselmouth, but Pansy laughed.

"You're alright Potter," she said, "Or rather, Harry. You coming then?"

"Yeah, give me just a second," Harry replied before turning back to his friends, "After dinner tonight let's meet up in the Room of Requirement so I can tell you guys what I found out this summer, okay?"

"I can't believe you're ditching us," Ron scowled, "You spent all summer with Draco, and we only got to see you for a week! Can't you even go one train ride without him?" Harry flushed guiltily; he really wanted to see Draco, maybe it was just because they were still fairly new, but he didn't want to abandon his friends.

"You stop trying to make him feel guilty this instant Ronald Weasley!" Hermione chastised, "Harry and Draco are still getting to know one another and Harry also needs to get to know Draco's friends; Draco spent two weeks on that cruise getting to know us and you can't begrudge Harry time spent with his fiancé!" She glared at the redhead who ducked his head in shame and then turned to Harry; "Go on Harry; we-everyone except Ron that is-understand you want to be with Draco right now. We'll see you later, alright?"

"Thanks 'Mione," Harry smiled and went to join his boyfriend.

"Took you long enough," Draco greeted when Harry entered the compartment, "I thought you were just going to ignore me now that we're headed back to school." He gave Harry a sharp look and the brunette rolled his eyes before walking over to sit next to him.

"Stop being so dramatic," he said, "I just had to deal with a slight jealousy issue from Ron." He frowned as something occurred to him, "He's not going to be happy when he finds out I won't be staying in the dorms; I just hope it's not a repeat of fourth year, or fifth year-I can see my housemates getting mad at me for moving out."

"Does that mean you don't want to get our own chambers?" Draco questioned, "Would you rather stay with the rest of the lions?"

"No," Harry shook his head, "I don't want my friends to be mad at me, but they'll get over it; I don't think I'd be able to sleep without you if I tried." He flashed a smile at the blonde which Draco returned before pulling a protesting Harry into his lap. "Draco! I told you about doing stuff like this in public!"

"We're not in public," Draco replied smoothly, "We're sitting with our friends."

"With your friends," Harry clarified, "I don't really know them yet." He tried to push away from Draco but the blonde merely tightened his grip and placed a kiss against Harry's neck where he had left a fresh love bite that morning.

"All that squirming is making me hard," Draco whispered in his ear, shifting Harry so that he could feel the blonde's erection through their clothes, "If you don't sit still I'll just have to kick everyone out so that we can take care of it; of course, then they'll all know what we're up to-"

"Fine!" Harry huffed, giving in with ill-grace, "You are an obnoxious snake."

"Well, we know who the bottom is in this relationship," Blaise smirked, causing Harry to turn bright red. "Ow!" He rubbed his cheek where he had been hit by Draco's stinging hex.

"I'm the only one who has the right to talk about his bottom," Draco said calmly, making Harry blush even more, "Try anything with Harry and a stinging hex will be the least of your problems." He glared at his friends, especially Pansy who simply rolled her eyes. At that moment the compartment door opened to reveal Crabbe and Goyle, Draco's former lackeys.

"There you are Draco," Crabbe said, "Oh good; you caught Potter! Can we have some fun with him before we turn him over to the Dark Lord?"

"No," Draco replied stonily, "Harry is mine, and I will not be handing him over to the Dark Lord, or anyone else. I do not support the Dark Lord-who will hereafter be referred to as Tom, since that is his true name-and I will not do anything in his service. You two can return to you parents and tell them that I do not serve their lord."

"Then you're on Dumbledore's side?" Goyle questioned, "You're so stupid Draco; the Dark Lord will kill that old fool soon enough; and to think he was actually going to give the task to you!"

"Huh, killing Dumbles," Draco mused, "Harry, can I-"

"No," Harry glared at him, "You will not join Tommy so that you can kill Dumbledore; we'll take care of him soon enough, and I don't want my fiancé walking around with that ugly tattoo on his arm."

"Spoil sport," Draco pouted for a moment before turning his attention back to his former goons, "To answer your question, I am not supporting Dumbledore either; I support Harry, and together we shall overcome both Tommy and Dumbles so that we can take over and rule the wizarding world."

"Um, Dray?" Harry asked hesitantly, "When did we decide to tackle the project of world domination?"

"Hm? Oh! I decided it last night," Draco replied, "I was thinking about our situation, and our friends, and realized that together we can easily conquer and control the world. Don't worry Lion, we'll discuss the plan in detail later; we'll just worry about one think at a time. Which reminds me;" he looked at the boys hulking in the doorway once more, "I have no further use for you if you serve the Dark Lord, so you may leave." Crabbe and Goyle glared at everyone for a moment before turning and shuffling away.

"Well, that was fun," Pansy said cheerfully, "Now, about your plans for world domination; we'll need to come up with a name for the group, as well as code names for the key members, costume design, decide on masks and a symbol-"

"We are not conquering the world!" Harry interrupted, "I simply want to defeat Voldie so he'll stop killing people and take away Dumble's power so that he can't manipulate and take advantage of people any longer; once that's done I just want to live a normal, peaceful life." Pansy pouted and Theo-who had apparently been jotting down ideas-also looked let down, at least until Draco spoke up again.

"Don't worry," he said confidentially, "I'll work on him; he'll come around soon. Now, I was thinking that we should have a place where our groups can meet up and talk in secret; any ideas?"

"The Room of Requirement," Harry responded promptly, "I already asked the gang to meet me there after dinner, so you guys should come as well; if you're going to ally yourselves with us you deserve to know the truth." Draco opened his mouth to protest but Harry shook his head, "I won't be like Dumbles and keep information from people in the pretense of protecting them; if you think everyone in this compartment is trustworthy bring them with you after dinner." Draco agreed, and they changed the topic to lighter matters, such as homework and their activities over summer break until they arrived at Hogsmeade Station. When it came time to get in the carriages Harry had a quick word with Draco and they climbed into a carriage with Ron, Hermione, and Pansy, while Theo, Blaise, Neville, Luna and Ginny shared another carriage.

"Why don't we all sit together at the welcome feast?" Ron suggested as they were discussing when would be the best time to show Dumbledore their solidarity.

"Because that would just confuse the first years," Hermione explained patiently, "I was thinking more like at breakfast."

"People show up at random times for breakfast," Draco pointed out, "No, dinner tomorrow night would probably be best; either that or you could join us at our table for dessert."

"I have a better idea," Harry said, "You're always saying we have enough power to do anything, right?" Draco nodded and Harry continued, "Well, after the sorting why don't you and I combine our magic to create another table? We can make it big enough to fit…fifteen people? Just in case others want to join us."

"You could get into a lot of trouble for that," Hermione frowned, "but…I don't think that it's actually against the rules, so Dumbledore can't really punish you…" She trailed off in thought for a moment before smiling, "I think that should work out very well, but make the table big enough for twenty if you can."

"Okay," Harry agreed, turning to Draco, "What do you think?"

"I think Dumbles will be shocked," Draco smirked, "Not only at our show of solidarity , but also at the power we're going to use. We don't want to show House favoritism though, so we should have a black tablecloth with-"

"No, black is too depressing," Pansy interrupted, earning a glare from Draco, "Make it silver with gold embroidery that way it will pay tribute to both of our Houses; if anyone from other Houses want to sit with us they will just have to deal with it."

"But Luna is a Ravenclaw," Hermione pointed out, "and she'll be sitting with us; why don't we have the embroidery showing eagles?"

"You're getting too complicated," Draco scowled, "It's just a tablecloth, therefore it will be silver and gold, with a simple vine design on it. End of discussion." They had just arrived at the castle, so Draco exited the carriage, pulling Harry with him before the girls could argue. He stopped just before they reached the steps of the school and pressed a kiss to Harry's lips. "What about food for our table?" he asked the brunette and Harry grinned.

"I'll call Dobby," he replied, "He won't mind getting us food at all." As if to prove his point, Dobby popped up in front of them bowing.

"Master Harry wanted Dobby? What can Dobby be doing for Harry Potter?" Dobby squeaked.

"Dobby! I'm glad to see you," Harry said, "After the sorting my friends and I will be creating a new table; can you make sure we have food on it?"

"Yes sir, Harry Potter sir!" Draco squeaked excitedly, "Dobby is taking care of Harry Potter and friends! Dobby is getting started right away!" With another bow Dobby popped off to the kitchens and Harry and Draco shared a laugh as they entered the castle. As they came to the entrance of the Great Hall Draco pulled Harry to him for one last kiss, ignoring the gasps around them, and they headed to their separate tables to await the sorting.

Throughout the Sorting Ceremony Harry was aware of Dumbledore's suspicious glare, but he ignored it in favor of exchanging greetings with Seamus and Dean, whom he hadn't talked to all summer. When the Sorting was over Gryffindor and Slytherin each had nine new students, Ravenclaw had six, and Hufflepuff had eight. Dumbledore gave his normal speech-which Harry turned out as usual-until he introduced the elder Weasley brothers which brought on a lot of applause, and then Harry looked across the hall-strange how he and Draco had always sat across from each other at meals, even in first year-and the blonde gave an almost imperceptible nod. Both boys stood up and walked around the tables, wand drawn and Harry saw Dumbledore stop McGonagall when she started to stand up; not doubt the headmaster thought they were about to get into a fight, but how wrong he was!

During his time in the goblin realm Narcissa and Severus had been teaching the boys more in-depth about how magic works; if you wish it hard enough you can make it happen, spells and incantations just make it easier for you to impose your will. Harry and Draco both had enough power that they could shape things according to their will without the use of a spell, and that's exactly what they did. The walked to the foot of their tables and faced each other with wands raised; at the same time each boy pointed his wand at the other-and moments later a table and chairs formed between them. The boys had agreed on the tablecloth but did not discuss the table itself, so the result was a table made half of black oak and half of cherry wood, and half of the chairs were also cherry wood while the rest were black oak.

The boys locked glances and laughed before moving to stand together and turning to address the hall.

"Harry and I would like to announce our engagement," Draco said, "We haven't chosen a date yet, but we have exchanged rings, and per wizarding law we are officially engaged, with the documents signed. Since Harry and I have put aside out differences and therefore we would like to offer this table as a place where friends and relatives can sit together without worrying about being accused of betraying their House; unfortunately the table is only big enough to sit thirty students" the boys had decided to make the table bigger so that it could sit more people, "but we welcome anyone who would like to sit here." As Draco finished speaking Harry took his hand and lead him around so that they were sitting side-by-side in the middle of the table, directly facing the staff table and Dumbledore, who looked dumbstruck at their actions, while a previously disapproving McGonagall looked on approvingly. As the boys sat food appeared on the table, and they were joined by their friends; Seamus, Dean, and the Creevey brothers also joined them from the Gryffindor table, while Astoria Greengrass was the only other Slytherin to join them, and she made sure to sit next to Pansy; Padma and Parvati Patil also joined them after a moment's hesitation, followed by Cho Chang from Ravenclaw and Justin Finch-Fletchy and Zacharias Smith from Hufflepuff. They still had about ten seats empty, but the boys felt that it was a good start.

As dinner progressed Harry happened to look up and catch Dumbledore's eye; the headmaster was furious, the twinkle in his eye vanished as he listened to McGonagall.

"She just finished telling him that what we did isn't against the rules," Draco whispered in his ear, "and she also said that she will have a house elf get a suite of rooms ready for us." Harry looked at him questioningly and Draco smirked, holding up one end of an extendable ear. "The twins gave me a few products, in the interest of protecting their financial backer, of course." Harry laughed softly and shook his head, feeling very pleased with himself as dessert appeared and he found a large serving of treacle tart on his plate. New Marauders'-which is what Harry had dubbed his group in his mind-1 and Dumbledore Zero. This was looking to be a good year.

******Author's Note*****Another chapter up, and I'm trying to get back into the plot as requested; I know I had a couple of filler chapters, but I wanted the boys to have a relaxing summer. Please tell me what you thought of it; also, I know Harry didn't have much a reaction to the whole being a horcrux thing, but I plan for that to come later. Until next time!**


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

Dinner passed fairly quickly as the students at Harry and Draco's table laughed and chatted with their friends; Pansy had attempted to bring up plans for taking over the wizarding world at one point and-to Harry's shock she was joined by Hermione, but they dropped the subject after seeing how uncomfortable it made Harry. When Dumbledore stood up to give his usual after dinner speech, Professor McGonagall walked over to Harry and beckoned for him and Draco to follow her. Once they were out in the corridor she took them to an empty classroom and closed the door behind them before speaking.

"As I'm sure you are aware, being betrothed entitles you to certain privileges while you are at school," McGonagall began, "And one of those privileges is getting your own rooms, which not even the headmaster can access without your permission once you set the password. Many of the older families had suites set aside in case of a betrothal, so you can choose from the Malfoy, Black or Potter suite; the Malfoy suite was last used by your parents Mr. Malfoy, but the other two have not been used in a few generations."

"Well, I definitely don't want to stay in the rooms my parents used," Draco said shuddering, "Why don't we use the Black suite, since we both have a connection to the family?"

"Fine by me," Harry shrugged, "I don't really care which rooms we use. Will they be ready tonight?"

"I'm afraid not," McGonagall frowned, "Professor Dumbledore said that the house elves are too busy to prepare the rooms tonight; he said start of term is always a busy time and that it may be a couple of weeks until the rooms are ready, so until then you will have to sleep in your dorms." Draco narrowed his eyes in anger, but managed to keep his voice calm as he replied;

"I will simply contact Mother and have her send a couple of house elves to prepare the rooms for us," he said, "I'm sure she can spare them for a few hours tonight." Before McGonagall could reply the door opened and Snape came in.

"Non-Hogwarts house elves are not allowed within the wards without permission from the headmaster," Snape informed them, "and he has said that he cannot be sure of the loyalty of the Malfoy house elves, therefore he will not agree to let them through."

"This is bullshit!" Harry growled, "Dumbledore is just trying to cause more problems! Can he really do this?"

"Mr. Potter!" McGonagall said sternly, "You will watch your language or I will assign you a detention! As for your accommodations, Albus is not purposefully causing problems; the house elves truly are busy the first couple of weeks and-"

"Actually," Severus interrupted, "Albus sent me to inform you that the new rooms will not be ready until October as he will be loaning a number of house elves to the ministry to help rebuild it after the events that occurred this past May."

"He is obviously doing this purposefully," Draco drawled, "The headmaster does not like the idea of Harry and I being together, so he is doing everything he can to come between us. Isn't there a way around this Se-Professor Snape?"

"Well, we can do nothing about the rooms not being ready tonight," Severus began, "Although you and Mr. Potter can work on cleaning your rooms yourselves-"

"Albus said they are not to clean the rooms themselves," McGonagall interjected, "The rooms have been in disuse for so long there is no telling what may be in them and he doesn't want the boys to be harmed."

"Very well," Severus gave a tight-lipped smile, "Then they will have to wait to move into the rooms, however no one has the right to keep the boys apart; according to the guidelines set down by previous headmasters and agreed upon by the school governors if suitable accommodations cannot be found then the betrothed must be allowed to sleep in one of their dormitories." He eyed Draco and Harry, "As much as I am loathe to allow Potter into the Slytherin dormitories, the two of you must be given that option."

"That hasn't been done in years," McGonagall protested, "And it has never been done with a Slytherin-Gryffindor couple; their housemates would never agree to it!"

"Actually, the other boys in my dorm don't have a problem with Draco," Harry said, "They all talked to him at dinner and there were no fights. Of course, he will have to put up with the 'atrocious red and gold' color scheme." He smiled cheekily at Draco who rolled his eyes in return.

"I'm sure I can handle a bit of red and gold," he drawled, "since I don't trust some of my housemates; Crabbe and Goyle have already made it clear that they don't like you."

"Very well," McGonagall sighed, "If you insist on doing this then I have no choice but to allow it, however you will cause no problems while you are in Gryffindor Tower, is that clear Mr. Malfoy?"

"Of course Professor," Draco replied, "Do I need to get my things from the Slytherin dormitory?"

"I will have a house elf take care of it," Severus replied, "and I will also inform your friends of the new circumstances. Potter-we will be resuming your Occlumency lessons beginning Wednesday, so you might ask Draco to help you practice in the meantime so you don't make a complete fool of yourself again." Harry glared at Snape but the potions master had already left the room, his robes billowing in his wake.

"You boys should get up to the tower then," McGonagall said, "the dormitory should be rearranged by the time you get there, and the password-which you will not share with any other Slytherin's, Mr. Malfoy-is Flamma Verum. Good night gentlemen." She opened the door and motioned the boys through, "Straight to the common room now Mr. Potter-no loitering!"

"Yes professor," Harry replied, "Good night!" He took Draco's hand and lead him through the hallways and up the staircases towards the Gryffindor Tower, ranting under his breath about manipulative old men who didn't know when to give up.

"Harry," Draco pulled him to a stop when they reached the seventh floor, "Calm down Lion; the portraits are always listening, and we don't need them taking tales back to Dumbledore."

"It's just so frustrating!" Harry growled, "No matter what we do, Dumbledore is always going to get in the way; we're just trying to get our own room for Merlin's sake! Why is he so threatened by that?"

"Because you would be completely outside of his reach while in the rooms," Draco replied, "You heard McGonagall; no one can enter our rooms without the password, including Dumbledore. Don't worry though; he can't keep us from getting our rooms forever; tomorrow we can send an owl to the ministry and protest Dumbledore's actions."

"Okay," Harry agreed, albeit reluctantly, "I just hope this new minister isn't as big a screw up as Fudge."

"Well, we'll find out soon," Draco said, "Now, we should get going before Filch finds us." Harry nodded his agreement and started down the hallway again, stopping in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady to give the password.

"Flamma Verum," he said and the portrait swung open, although the Fat Lady gave Draco a glare as the boys entered. Looking around, Harry saw that Ron and Hermione were sitting by the fireplace, but Neville, Seamus and Dean were not in the common room, so they must have already gone up to the dorm.

"Harry!" Ron cried, jumping up as he entered, "What did McGonagall want? You're not in trouble for dinner are you?" He scowled as he noticed Draco standing behind Harry, "Hey, why is he here?"

"Because Dumbledore decided to interfere in my life again," Harry replied, "McGonagall wanted to tell us that we would be given our own rooms since we're engaged, but that it would have to wait until the house elves have a chance to clean the rooms-"

"Which, according to Dumbledore, will take two months," Draco interjected, "Then Severus told us that we can sleep in either the Gryffindor or Slytherin dorms, and since I don't trust some of my housemates, we are sleeping here."

"Wonderful," Ron scowled, "So now I don't get any time with my best friend." Before Harry could reply Hermione spoke up.

"Wait, I thought you two didn't sign the betrothal contract yet because Harry is underage," she said, walking over to join them, "your betrothal shouldn't be recognized by the school until the contract is signed."

"I already signed it," Harry informed her, "Narcissa and Severus said that this will give me more freedom at school and help keep me safer from Dumbledore." He noticed that a lot of the other Gryffindor's were watching them intently, so he jerked his head in the direction of the boy's dorm and said, "Why don't we talk up in the room so we won't be overheard."

"Hey guys," Seamus greeted as the group entered the dorm, "Do you need us to leave?"

"Nah, you can stay," Harry said, "We just don't the others listening because we don't know where everyone's loyalties lie."

"So Malfoy really is sleeping in here then?" Dean questioned, pointing at Harry's bed which had two trunks in front of it, "I thought it was just some kind of prank! Too bad they didn't expand the bed; it's going to be a tight fit for two of you."

"That's okay," Draco smirked, sauntering over to the bed indicated and sitting down, "I like being close to Harry."

"Shut it Prat," Harry sat next to Draco, smacking him upside the head, "Anyway, 'Mione, Ron…did you have more questions?"

"Were you really going to leave us so you can sleep with him?" Ron demanded, "It's like every aspect of your life revolves around the stupid git!"

"As it should," Draco said, "Although, I wouldn't be calling other people names if I were you, Weasle-y."

"Enough Dray," Harry said, before addressing Ron, "Look, it's not like I'm planning to abandon you, but Draco and I are betrothed and I want to spend time with him; you and I will still get to hang out Ron, but I'm going to spend time with Draco too."

"Really Ron!" Hermione admonished, scowling at the redhead, "I thought we already discussed this! You're acting like a child!" Ron was flushed with embarrassment as he noticed everyone in the room looking at him disapprovingly.

"I'm sorry, alright?" he mumbled, "I'm still getting used to the fact that Harry is with Malfoy, and it's kind of hard to deal with."

"Don't worry mate," Seamus grinned, putting an arm around Ron's shoulders, "We'll make sure you don't get lonely when the Chosen One is with his chosen one." Everyone groaned at the bad pun and Harry threw a pillow at Seamus, hitting him in the face. Seamus laughed as he tossed the pillow back to Harry and the brunette set it down behind him.

"That was horrible," Harry said, "Can we move on now? 'Mione, we might need your help with writing a letter to the ministry."

"A letter?" Hermione questioned, "Why would you be writing to the ministry?"

"Because Dumbledore is trying to keep us from getting our own rooms," Harry replied, "At first we were only going to have to wait a couple weeks for the rooms to be cleaned, but then he told Snape that he was loaning out some house elves to the ministry and the rooms wouldn't be ready until October."

"He has also forbidden us from cleaning the rooms ourselves," Draco added, "Although I can't say I really wanted to clean the room…and he won't allow me to ask Mother to let some of our house elves help. According to Ministry law, we should be in our own rooms tonight, but he doesn't want to let Harry have that much freedom from him."

"Hmmm…he might have another reason as well," Hermione mused, "I'm certain that Dumbledore knew the two of you would be allowed to share a dorm, and he probably thought that the other boys would get mad and cause problems; he most likely thinks that this is the best way to drive a wedge between you, and hopes that Harry will break the betrothal."

"He can't," Draco said, and Harry smiled kissing his cheek.

"Don't worry," He assured the blonde, "I have no intention of breaking the betrothal."

"No, you misunderstand," Draco smirked, "You really can't break the betrothal; remember that contract you signed when you called me to take away your cousin? If you lost the labyrinth then you would be mine, which means that you can't leave me even if you want to." He looked smugly proud of himself and laughed when Harry glared at him. "What? I told you that I've wanted you for a long time; you didn't expect me to give you a chance to leave me, did you?"

"You are an arrogant, stuck up Slytherin," Harry replied, smacking his arm, "What would you have done if I rejected your proposal?"

"I would have wooed you until you agreed," Draco grinned, "and I can be very persuasive, as you well know, Lion." He moved to draw Harry into a kiss, but was halted by a face full of pillow.

"I told you not to call me that in front of my friends," Harry said calmly, "We should probably head up to the Room of Requirement so your friends aren't waiting too-hey!" He yelped as Draco pushed him down onto the bed and straddled him, "What are you-no! Dray! Stop!" The Slytherin trapped Harry's wrists above his head and began tickling him, much to the amusement of the other Gryffindor's. "I'm sorry! Stop, please!" Harry panted as he giggled helplessly.

"Hmph! That ought to teach you to hit me with a pillow," Draco said as he released Harry, "Come on now;" he climbed off the bed and pulled Harry with him, "I thought we were leaving?"

"That was before you attacked me," Harry muttered, "Stupid sneaky Slytherin." He glared at Draco but the blonde ignored it.

"Are all of your dorm mates coming with us?" Draco asked, "It might be hard to get everyone to the room; I don't know how Pansy, Blaise and Theo are going to get all the way from the dungeons."

"No, just Ron, 'Mione and Neville," Harry replied, before giving Seamus and Dean an apologetic look, "Sorry guys; it's not that I don't trust you, but this is about Voldemort and it's safer for you not to know exactly what's going on. Ron and 'Mione are already involved, and-"

"No worries Harry," Dean assured him, "We know Ron and Hermione always help you out, and your adventures are a little too dangerous even for us. Besides, I still need to finish my transfiguration essay; help me out Shay?"

"Sure," Seamus replied, "but I didn't do too well on my Owls; I only got an A in transfiguration."

"That's because the two of you were always goofing off in class," Hermione chided, "The number of detentions you two got for not paying attention; the only one who had more detentions than the two of you was Harry-"

"Unfair comparison!" Harry protested, "The only reason I had so many detentions is because Umbridge hated me…and Draco was being a big prat too."

"Well, I'm sure you started it," Draco said, "As for Umbridge…perhaps you shouldn't have made her look as stupid as she is."

"Maybe we should go and you guys could argue later," Neville suggested, "We still need to get to the room without being seen." The group that was leaving said their goodbyes to Dean and Seamus and made their way to the spot of wall where the entrance to the Room of Requirement was hidden. Harry walked back and forth in front of the room three times and then a wooden door appeared; when he entered the room Harry was pleased to see that it contained a number of comfy-looking arm chairs and two loveseats, all upholstered in shades of blue and green-combined with the fireplace the room was soothing and comfortable. Once everyone was seated-Ron and Hermione sharing one loveseat, Neville in a chair and Harry-despite his protests-sitting on Draco's lap in another chair-Harry brought out the Marauder's Map and saw that the Slytherin's were still in their common room.

"Your friends haven't left yet Dray," Harry said, "Why don't you take the map and go get them? We'll wait here for you."

"You're letting me take the map?" "You're letting him take the map?" Draco and Ron exclaimed at the same time, causing Ron to scowl at the blonde.

"Yes," Harry sighed, "Draco is taking the map; I trust him." He stood up so Draco could get out of the chair and then glared at Ron, "Stop being so suspicious of him all the time or we are going to have a problem Ron." Ron had the grace to look embarrassed but didn't say anything as Draco gave Harry a brief kiss and then left the room. As they waited for Draco's return the four Gryffindor's played Exploding Snap, bringing back memories of his time in the oubliette.

"This is almost just like the oubliette," Harry said, after forty-five minutes of waiting, "Stupid Slytherin taking forever while we're stuck playing this stupid game." He threw his hand at the floor and a small explosion went off just as the door opened and Draco came in, followed by the other Slytherin's.

"I don't think you should play that game anymore," Draco said drily, "It always seems to put you in a bad mood." He waved his wand to clear the soot off Harry's face and then tugged on his hand to make him stand up; when the brunette refused to move Draco just shrugged and plopped down on his lap, making Harry groan;

"Jeez Dray, what have you been eating?" he teased, earning himself an elbow in the ribs.

"Why don't we just get to the point, hmm?" Draco suggested, "After all, we still need to get everybody back to their dorms; which reminds me-where are Luna and Ginny?"

"Oops," Hermione said, "We forgot to bring them with us; should someone go get them? I'm sure they still have their D.A. galleons."

"No," Harry shook his head, "We can tell them later; it's probably better if they don't know everything that I'm about to tell you." He took a deep breath and then decided to just jump in. "First off, there's this prophesy which basically means Voldie and I have to keep fighting until one of us is dead; it says-"

"'The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches ... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies ... and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not ... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives ...'" Draco quoted the prophesy, "I had Severus tell me the exact wording. The thing is, the prophesy could have been referring to Harry or Neville, but Tom made Harry the child of the prophesy."

"So, when it says marked by Voldemort is the prophesy referring to Harry's scar?" Theo asked, frowning.

"That, and the ability to speak Parseltongue," Draco confirmed, "but also…" he trailed off and Harry continued, wrapping his arms around Draco's waist.

"I'm also marked by the piece of Voldemort's soul that he left in me," Harry said quietly, drawing shocked gasps from the other students, "Has any of you heard of a horcrux?"

"No!" Pansy gasped, "The Dark Lord made you a horcrux? But…how? Why?"

"Wait, what's a horcrux?" Hermione demanded, "I've never heard that term before."

So Harry and Draco explained to the group what a horcrux was, Severus' theory on how many Voldemort had created, and how Harry happened to become one. When the boys finished their friends had all been shocked into silence, and Hermione had tears in her eyes.

"Don't worry," Harry reassured everyone, "Sev is-I mean Severus-is trying to create a potion to remove Voldie's soul from me; he won't let me get killed because of this. I just wanted to tell you guys because Narcissa thinks that Dumbledore might try to get me to help him hunt down the other horcruxes-"

"Of course," Hermione nodded, "We-well, Ron and I for sure-will help you however you need us to; I'm sure I can find information on destroying horcruxes so that when you find one you won't have any problems…"

"No!" Draco said vehemently, startling Hermione, "Harry is not going on a horcrux hunt; he's only sixteen, for Merlin's sake! If there are any horcruxes left when we graduate I will personally help Harry destroy them, but as of right now it is not his responsibility! Really Granger; I thought you had more sense than to encourage a sixteen year old-who is supposed to be your best friend-to go on a dangerous mission that can be better handled by adults!"

"I-it's-" Hermione stammered, red with embarrassment, "Of course I don't want Harry to go after dangerous artifacts, but I know better than anyone that when Harry makes his mind up there's no stopping him; I was just offering my support because I thought he might go off without it!"

"I'm not that reckless," Harry muttered, pinching Draco when he scoffed at him.

"Yes you are," Draco countered, "That's okay though-that's why I'm here, to curb your reckless Gryffindor behavior and get you to use the Slytherin cunning that must be inside you somewhere, if the hat really was considering placing you in Slytherin."

"What?" There was a chorus of shocked cries, and then Blaise spoke up.

"Wait a minute," the Italian began, "You mean to tell me Potter was almost placed in Slytherin? Then how did he end up in the Lion's Den?" So Harry sighed and told them about his sorting, and how he got placed in Gryffindor. By the time he finished it was nearing midnight, and time for everyone to head back to their dorms. After extracting a promise from Blaise that he would return it, Harry let the Slytherin's borrow the Marauder's Map since they had further to go; everyone said their good-byes in the Room of Requirement with an agreement to eat breakfast together the following morning, and then Draco and the Gryffindor's headed up to the tower while the Slytherin's went down to the dungeons.

"Well, good night then," Hermione said when they got back to the common room, "I'll see you boys in the morning." She gave each of the boys-including a surprised Draco-a hug and then headed up to the girls dormitory, leaving the boys to make their own way upstairs. They all changed into their pajamas-Harry had an argument with Draco who wanted him to sleep in just his boxers as he did at the manor, but Harry won-and then climbed into their beds. Draco pulled the curtains around his and Harry's bed and spelled them shut before lying down, spooning his fiancé.

"Stop it Dray," Harry pushed Draco's hands away when the blonde attempted to slip it inside his pajamas, "We're not messing around with my friends in the room."

"Very well," Draco agreed, "I will just request that they leaved until we are finished."

"Don't you dare!" Harry hissed, and Draco placed a kiss on his neck, chuckling.

"I was just joking," Draco said, "Now, we have class tomorrow, so go to sleep. Goodnight Lion."

"Good night Dray," Harry replied, snuggling into his arms as he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

The next morning the boys in Harry's room had a meeting to discuss ways on how to get Harry and Draco their own room.

"We'll just complain loudly about being locked out of the dorm so those two can have alone time," Seamus suggested, "Also, those of us with wizarding parents can write them letters to complain about the situation; they will likely be outraged by what Dumbledore is doing."

"Amazing," Draco drawled, "A Gryffindor coming up with a good idea-the world must be coming to an end!" Harry made a playful swipe at Draco's head, laughing as Seamus threw a chocolate frog at the blonde. "Oh good," Draco smirked as he opened it, "I love chocolate frogs. And look; I got one of the rarest cards out there!" He held up the card, showing a dark-haired, bespectacled boy with a lightning bolt scar on his forehead, smiling shyly at the room.

"Wait, they made a card for me?" Harry cried, "Why did I not know this?" He tried to grab the card from Draco but the blonde held it out of his reach and proceeded to read;

"'Harry James Potter, son of Lily and James Potter is most famous for his defeat of the Dark Lord You-Know-Who October 31, 1981, which left him with a lightning bolt scar on his forehead. Harry is currently attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as the star seeker of Gryffindor House.'"

"That's lame," Harry shook his head as his friends laughed, but he smiled as he saw Draco tuck the card into the pocket of his robe, "Can't they at least wait until after I defeat Voldie to make a card for me?"

"I wonder when they'll make my card," Draco mused, "Probably after the wedding, don't you think Harry?"

"Ha! And I can tell you what it will say," Neville laughed, "'Draco Malfoy, son of Narcissa and Lucius Malfoy, is most famous for his marriage to Harry Potter, savior of the wizarding world. Draco captured Harry's heart by trapping him in a labyrinth for thirteen hours, after which he proposed to the exhausted and confused hero. Draco attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, star seeker of Slytherin House and only ever lost to Harry Potter, although he maintains that he threw the match as part of his efforts to win our saviors heart.'" The whole room laughed, except for Draco who pouted next to Harry.

"Don't worry Dray," Harry kissed his cheek, "You still have plenty of time to do something amazing, and who knows? You might get a chance to beat me to the snitch."

"Can we go to breakfast now?" Ron demanded, "I'm hungry, and I don't want to eat alone." The other boys agreed and they made their way downstairs, joined by Hermione and Ginny.

When they reached the Great Hall Harry was pleased to note that the table they had conjured last night was still there, and a few people from different houses were already seated. Draco's Slytherin friends were there as well, and the group from Gryffindor joined them. Breakfast was uneventful, and the Gryffindor's and Slytherin's had most of their classes together today-first was Potions with Snape, followed by History of Magic with Binns, then lunch and Transfiguration with McGonagall, and then they had their extra class-Harry, Ron, Neville, Blaise and Pansy had Care of Magical Creatures with Hagrid while Draco, Theo, and Hermione had Arithmancy.

The day passed fairly quickly, and once classes were over the group met up in the library before dinner. Hermione and Pansy sat with Draco and Harry to help them draft a letter to the minister, while the other students wrote home to their parents to complain about Dumbledore's interference in Harry and Draco's relationship. By the time they went to dinner all of the letters had been sent off, and the boys were hopeful that the situation would be resolved soon.

The first week of school passed quickly and without any real problems for the Gryffindor-Slytherin + Ravenclaw group; Harry and Draco's roommates made sure to complain regularly about being locked out of the room-which Draco actually did once, catching an unsuspecting Harry by surprise and snogging him thoroughly before giving him the most amazing blowjob of his life, which was eagerly returned before Hermione managed to break the charms locking the door. They had also noticed an increased number of owls dropping off letters to a harassed-looking Dumbledore. That Friday Minister Scrimgeour was at breakfast, and Harry and Draco were summoned to Dumbledore's office afterwards for a meeting.

"He never gives me the stupid password," Harry muttered, "Umm…Almond Joy? Gum Drops? Twix?"

"What are you doing?" Draco scowled, "Dumbledore's passwords are always candy, not nonsense words."

"Those are Muggle candies," Harry replied absently, "He has been on a Muggle candy fix lately…Kit Kat Bar?" To their surprise the gargoyle jumped aside and the boys looked at each other warily before climbing the stairs for their meeting with the minister.

************************Author's Note******************Sorry for the delay (and for leaving it like this!) but I have been busy at work and my cousin just had a baby, so lots going on! I am slowly-but-surely getting back into the plot, but I have a bit or writer's block with making things come out the way I want. I plan to get the next chapter up within the week, and it should be longer with more happening as well. Hope you enjoy!**


	20. Chapter 20

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

"Ah, Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy!" Dumbledore beamed at the boys from behind his desk, "Thank you for joining us; have you met Minister Scrimgeour?"

"We saw him at my trial a couple of months ago," Draco replied, "Hello Minister." Harry smiled and nodded at the minister in greeting, and Scrimgeour nodded back at the boys.

"Mr. Malfoy; Mr. Potter," Scrimgeour began, "Why don't we all sit down so we can get started? I know you boys have classes." The minister sat in a straight-backed wooden chair to one side of Dumbledore's desk and the boys sat in an arm chair facing him-Draco in the chair and Harry sitting on the arm.

"Excellent!" Dumbledore twinkled, "Now, we need to discuss your living arrangements;" he paused to frown at the boys, "I'm sure you know, Mr. Malfoy, that locking the other boys out of the room so you can seduce Mr. Potter is not acceptable behavior-"

"That is not the reason we are here," the minister interrupted, giving the headmaster a fierce look, "We are here to discuss your interference into the lives of these two gentlemen; as you are undoubtedly aware, Dumbledore, betrothed couples have the right to a private suite which should be ready no later than one week after school starts. I have received copies of the signed contract between the boys, and I know that you have received a copy as I forwarded it to you as well; you have no right to deny them their private chambers. What do you have to say for yourself Headmaster?"

"I was not aware that Mr. Potter's signature would be recognized as valid by the ministry," Dumbledore stated, "After all, he is still underage-"

"That's a lie," Harry protested, "Snape told you the paperwork declaring me an adult was valid and during Draco and Narcissa's trial you were once again told that I am now considered a legal adult, which means I can sign anything I want; I could sign my entire fortune away to Voldemort if I want and no one can legally object."

"Aha!" Dumbledore exclaimed, "And that is the true reason I did not wish to provide Harry and Mr. Malfoy with their own private suite-the young Malfoy has already corrupted him, and it will not be long before Harry turns his back on us and joins Voldemort!"

"Why would I join the nutter who killed my parents?" Harry scoffed, "I only said that bit about giving my money away to make a point-I would never join him, and what I decide to do is none of your business anyway."

"Exactly," Draco nodded, "Like I would ever let Harry give his money away to anyone but me-you must be even more insane than Voldie!"

"Well, now that you have assured us you have no intentions of funding You-Know-Who's attacks," the minister began-his face was serious but Harry thought he could detect amusement in his gaze, "we can get this issue settled. I have spoken with the board of governors-and received numerous owls from concerned parents-and have arranged for your suite to be ready after dinner tonight; the house elves will make sure your belongings are moved to your new quarters. Also, as a betrothed couple you have the right to two house elves who will take care of your rooms exclusively; do you have house elves or would you like the headmaster to assign them?"

"Can Winky and Dobby be transferred to our service?" Harry questioned, "They aren't technically bound to the school, as far as I know."

"That would be acceptable," Dumbledore nodded, "I am willing to loan them to you during the school year; Dobby! Winky!" After a moment the two house elves appeared, looking as different as night and day; Dobby was wearing a pair of shorts that fit him like pants, an orange tie with pink and blue stars, a purple tea cozy on his head and one green sock with yellow spots and one red sock with silver spots, while Winky wore a dirty dish towel with the Hogwarts crest and a lopsided pink hat that was obviously knitted by Hermione.

"Wonderful!" Dumbledore enthused, and Harry found himself wondering what it would take to depress the older wizard-he was rather tired of Dumbledore's damn twinkling eyes, "Winky; Dobby-how would you like to serve Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy in their new rooms?"

As Harry predicted Dobby immediately began sobbing and exclaiming about how great and kind Harry was and how he would be honored to serve such a wonderful master, but Winky's reaction is the one that caught Harry's attention.

"Winky is to be bound to Master Harry and Master Draco?" She asked, eyes even wider than usual, and then promptly burst into tears; "Oh, Winky is not deserving of such kindness! Winky will be best house elf ever! Thank you!"

"Well, I didn't mean that you would bond to them," Dumbledore began, but the minister spoke over him.

"Yes Winky," the minister smiled, "You and Dobby will be bound to Harry and Draco for as long as they are together. Mr. Malfoy, are you aware of the process to bind a house elf to a family?"

"Of course," Draco nodded, as he got to his feet, motioning for Harry to stand beside him; he absently noted that Dumbledore had opened his mouth to protest, but was unable to make a sound-by the way Harry was smirking he suspected that the brunette was behind the headmasters silence-"Since we are betrothed we have to do this together; basically Dobby and Winky have to hand us an article of clothing, and we accept it and that seals their service to us." Dobby nodded at this and took off his tie, which Draco and Harry accepted, each taking hold of one end. "I, Draco Malfoy, do hereby accept your service to the Potter-Malfoy household." He nodded at Harry, and the brunette repeated; "I, Harry Potter, do hereby accept your service to the Potter-Malfoy household." A pale blue light enveloped Dobby and the tie he had given the boys, and when it had faded they could see that Dobby now wore a crisp white pillowcase tied like a toga with a patch in the upper left corner displaying the Malfoy and Potter crests. They repeated the ceremony with Winky, who handed over her hat, and soon she too was wearing what appeared to be the new Potter-Malfoy house elf uniform.

"I did not agree to this!" Ah, it appeared Dumbledore finally had his voice back-he must have broken Harry's spell as the brunette pouted upon hearing the headmasters voice, "I agreed to loan out the house elves, not to allow them to bond with these delinquents!"

"Then perhaps you should not have allowed the elves such freedom," Scrimgeour replied calmly before addressing the teens, "Why don't you send those two to prepare your rooms so that we can conclude this meeting?"

"Of course," Harry agreed, "Dobby, Winky; Draco and I will be moving into the Black family suite; can you get it ready for us and move our things from Gryffindor Tower?"

"Yes, Master Harry!" Dobby bowed, "Dobby and Winky is taking care of everything Masters need!"

"Winky is making sure masters has the nicest, cleanest rooms in Hogwarts!" Winky agreed, and a moment later both house elves were gone.

"Good," the minister nodded and smiled at Harry and Draco, "Now, the reason I am here; the headmaster's interference with your relationship is actually against the laws of our world, and it is my duty to see if you boys would like to press charges. In addition, I have a delivery from Gringotts for Mr. Potter." He handed Harry a thick packet and the Gryffindor sat back down-this time he sat in the chair and Draco sat on the arm so he could read over his fiancés shoulder.

"It's the inquiry into your accounts," Draco murmured, "Look at how much money has been taken out!" He leaned over and flipped through the pages, pointing out things that he thought Harry should be aware of. "And it looks like he has been harassing the goblins about being cut off from your funds; this is definitely enough information to press charges; would you like me to contact our solicitor?"

"Yes," Harry nodded firmly, "I want to get this taken care of as soon as possible; what about his actions over the past week? Should we press charges for that?" He looked up and noticed Dumbledore glaring at them suspiciously; he and Draco had been talking softly so that the headmaster wouldn't hear them, and Dumbledore obviously didn't like not knowing what was going on.

"I think we should," Draco said, "It will only result in him being fined, however I don't think he should get away with his actions." Harry nodded his agreement and Draco looked over at the minister; "Harry and I are in agreement that we will press charges, however there is more than one offense that we feel he needs to be held accountable for, so we will meet with our solicitor and send you and owl with our complaints."

"Very well," the minister nodded, "That is acceptable; I will expect your owl by the end of the month?"

"Expect it by the end of the week," Harry corrected, "We want this resolved as soon as possible."

"Complaints? Harry my boy, surely we can resolve this ourselves?" Dumbledore appealed to his former pawn, "You're like family to me, and I don't see why we need an outside party to resolve our issues; I must believe that Mr. Malfoy is influencing you against me."

"This is not Draco's fault," Harry retorted, "and I have no desire to discuss this with you any further; you will hear from our solicitor soon. In the meantime, may we be excused to go to class? Professor McGonagall doesn't like for us to be late."

"Of course, "Scrimgeour replied, "If you don't mind, I will walk down with you. Dumbledore-I will keep you informed of the legal matters as needed. Good day to you Headmaster." He gave Dumbledore a curt nod and then followed Harry and Draco out of the office. Once they were away from the stone gargoyle, the minister motioned the boys into an empty classroom, where they all sat down on a desk.

"Thank you for your help with this Minister," Draco began, "I know you must have a very busy schedule, so we definitely appreciate you coming down here in person."

"It was nothing," the minister waved it away, "However, if you wish to thank me, your support-and that of your Mother, Mr. Malfoy-would be greatly appreciated. After the way Fudge handled things the ministry is in disarray, and the people have no faith in us; if the two of you supported our actions, however…"

"Well," Harry began slowly, "So far I admit you are doing a much better job than Fudge; I don't have a problem with showing my support as long as the ministry doesn't go back to acting the way it did last year."

"Excellent; in that case I look forward to hearing from you regarding the case against Dumbledore," Scrimgeour gave a small tight smile and offered his hand to Harry and then Draco before leaving the classroom.

"What was that all about?" Harry questioned Draco, causing the blonde to sigh and shake his head in exasperation.

"You just offered the minister your support without even realizing it?" he asked, "Really Harry, how clueless are you? Now he will expect you-well, us, actually-to show up and tell everyone that he is a great minster and that the ministry is doing a wonderful job, etcetera, etcetera."

"Oh," Harry said quietly and then shrugged, "Well, I don't really have a problem with that until they do something which I don't agree with; does it bother you?"

"No," Draco replied, "As you said, I will support the ministry until it is no longer beneficial to me."

"I didn't say that!" Harry protested as Draco grabbed his hand, pulling him from the empty classroom.

"You implied it," the blonde said airily, "Now come on; as you pointed out earlier we can't be late to McGonagall's class." He pulled Harry down the hallway and to the Transfiguration classroom, not giving Harry a chance to protest further.

The rest of the day passed fairly quickly, and soon Harry and Draco found themselves standing in front of the painting that concealed the entrance to their rooms; in a silver frame was a portrait of an ancient-looking wizard wearing dark blue robes with silver stars accompanied by a brown barn owl.

"Merlin!" Draco breathed reverently, and the wizard bowed with a smile.

"That is correct," Merlin replied, "And you must be Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter; a pleasure to meet you."

"Wait, you're Merlin?" Harry cried, "Wow! How did we get your portrait to guard our rooms?"

"I was friendly with a previous member of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black," Merlin smiled, "I didn't really have any descendants, so I agreed that my friend could keep my portrait, and when this room was built I was put here; I must say it's good to see you boys-it has been far too long since I have had charges staying in this room, and the headmaster doesn't like it when I wander. Well now, I'm sure you boys must be tired, so why don't you set a password-which I require to be kept the same for one month unless you feel it has been compromised-and we can chat later."

"Umm…" Harry said articulately, giving Draco the chance to set the password.

"That sounds good," Draco replied, "Our first password will be…Slytherin's Lion."

"Very well; it is set," Merlin agreed, drowning out Harry's indignant "Hey!"; "You gentlemen have a good night, and I shall see you tomorrow." Harry opened his mouth to protest, but was pushed through the now-open portrait and into their new suite, which promptly had him gawking in silence.

The suite definitely deserved a moment or two of staring, although Harry should have figured it would be nice since the Blacks were an old, wealthy family. The first room was a comfortable-looking common room; the walls were a soft cream color, while the floor was dark wood, and a black marble fireplace stood against the far wall. In front of the fireplace was a black suede sofa, love seat and armchair sitting on top of an oriental rug in dark blue with silver and green designs. A door off to the left lead to a small library, while a door on the right led to a guest bathroom and at the back of the common room was a spiral staircase leading up to the second floor landing which contained a bedroom-very similar to the room Harry and Draco had been staying in over the summer, done in jewel tones of blue, green and purple with a little silver-containing two large walk-in closets and two comfortable-looking desks along with a king-sized bed. A connecting door led to an in-suite bathroom once again done in blue, green and silver with a large tub only slightly smaller than the one in the prefects bathroom and a shower that looked as if it could fit ten people, which had a bench at one end.

"Nice," Draco nodded, "At least the colors aren't all red and gold-I half expected Dobby to make this place look like the Gryffindor dorm room."

"Nah," Harry said dismissively, "I'll bet the Blacks put a spell on these rooms that prevent the colors red and gold being used in any large amounts-most people from that family have been in Slytherin after all."

"True," Draco nodded, "Do you have any homework to do tonight?"

"Hmm…I have the two-foot essay for McGonagall, but that isn't due for another two days, and then I have to make up a dream journal for Trelawney-she'll be checking them weekly-and the charms essay which is due tomorrow. Charms shouldn't take two long because it's about the protean charm, and I learned about that from 'Mione last year, and making up dreams is always easy-I just have to write stuff about my doom to make Trelawney happy-and I can wait until tomorrow for Transfiguration, so I should be done in about thirty minutes."

"No," Draco shook his head, "You might as well get it all done tonight; if you wait until tomorrow you'll just have more work, so you'll put something else off and then by the time the weekend comes along you'll be so far behind on homework that you won't have time for anything else; besides, I still have to finish McGonagall's essay and my Arithmancy homework. I told you I refuse to associate with an un-educated cretin; therefore I shall make sure your work is done on time. So, let's get started." Draco walked over to one of the desks and proceeded to get his homework out, which is why he missed his fiancés scowl, but he heard the mumbled; "Stupid know-it-all Slytherin! He's worse than 'Mione. Prat."

"I heard that," Draco said, "and you will pay for those words Potter; don't forget what happened the last time I had to take vengeance upon you." He looked over his shoulder and saw that Harry was blushing, "I may be willing to forgive you those insults however-if you can get your homework finished by the time I'm done."

"Fine," Harry sighed, "Let's get this over with." For the next two hours the boys focused on their homework, and Draco managed to finish his first. When he stood up to check on Harry he saw that the brunette still had a foot left on his essay for McGonagall, so decided to take a shower while he waited for the brunette to finish.

Thirty minutes later, Draco was in bed after his shower and Harry joined him upon finishing his essay. He changed into his black boxers and crawled onto the bed, laying down with his head on Draco's chest and listening to his heartbeat.

"Took you long enough," Draco murmured, kissing the top of his head, "Tomorrow should be better; we won't have to do extra work for missing out on a class because of that barmy old man."

"Mmmm," Harry agreed sleepily, "Dray? You aren't really going to take revenge for what I said earlier are you?"

"No," Draco replied, tightening his hold on the brunette as he felt him relax, "Not tonight anyway." Harry stiffened for a moment before shaking his head and chuckling.

"Fine," he smiled, "but if you get to take revenge when I annoy you then it applies the other way around as well."

"Nope," Draco smirked, "I get to do revenge because I'm a Slytherin; Gryffindor's don't get to plot revenge."

"That's crazy!" Harry argued, "anyone can plot revenge if they have a reason."

"Nope, not Gryffindor's," Draco said, "You're too noble. Now, if you don't mind, I need my beauty sleep."

"Okay," Harry agreed "I guess not everyone can be as naturally attractive as me."

"Watch it Potter," Draco warned, but Harry just laughed and lifted his head to capture Draco's lips in a kiss.

"G'night Dray," he smiled. Draco whispered goodnight back to him and he fell asleep with a smile on his face…

The room was dark and crowded with men and women in robes; they all wore white masks to hide their identities-all except for the man sitting on the throne in the middle of the room. The man was Lord Voldemort, and the people around him were his loyal followers-or at least, some of them were loyal.

"Goyle!" Voldemort snapped, "Where is Lucius? I haven't seen him since Potter vanished; has he betrayed me?"

"N-no My Lord," Goyle stammered, and screamed as he was rewarded with the cruciatus curse.

"The where is he?" Voldemort demanded, "Parkinson! You were arranging a union between your daughter and Malfoy's son; surely you know where Lucius is, unless you are traitor as well?"

"I am loyal to you, and only you," Parkinson replied nervously, "I haven't seen Lucius since I approached him about the betrothal of our children; he is…I'm sorry My Lord, Lucius has put a block in my mind so I can't tell you where he is! Please forgive me!" Parkinson abased himself in front of his lord and didn't dare to look up as he heard the soft swish of robes as Voldemort approached him. He felt long fingers tangle in his hair and then his head was jerked back harshly so that he could look into the crimson eyes of his master.

"Look at me Parkinson," Voldemort ordered, "Look at me and lay bare all of your secrets." A moment later Parkinson screamed, and continued screaming as Voldemort forced his way into his follower's mind, tearing at the memories as he looked for the information he needed. Soon, he found the Obliviate placed by Lucius and ripped that away as well, relishing in the additional pain it caused. After a moment he had everything he needed-he saw that Lucius was ruler of the goblin realm, which he did not share with his master and also saw that he had Harry Potter at his mercy but decided not to hand him over.

"So," Voldemort hissed, "Malfoy is a traitor; he has been keeping secrets from me." He released Parkinson, using a well-placed kick in his back to knock the man flat on the floor, "Get up Parkinson; you are a pureblood, so act like it."

"Y-yes My Lord," Parkinson replied, getting to his feet, "I'm sorry My Lord."

"Yes, you are," Voldemort replied, "You are a sorry excuse for a follower; how dare you keep secrets from me? Silence!" He roared as Parkinson opened his mouth to reply, "You are a failure, and you shall be punished. Crucio." He said it almost negligently, put the strength of the curse brought Parkinson to his knees as he screamed out in pain. Voldemort kept the curse on him for five minutes and then removed it for a moment before casting it again and making it last longer this time.

"Lord Parkinson needs to be punished, but I have other matters to attend to," Voldemort said, "Crabbe, Goyle, Nott, Bella-I charge you with making sure he receives the appropriate punishment; he is not to go home before the sun rises." There was a chorus of eager agreements from his minions, but Voldemort ignored it as he swept from the room. While searching through Parkinson's memories he had seen the young Malfoy boy's face when talking about Harry Potter; Draco Malfoy was in love with Harry Potter, and now all he had to do was find a way to exploit it…Potter was as good as his, and then Dumbledore and the rest of the wizarding world would fall. If he planned it carefully, he should be able to take over the goblin realm as well; a slow, cruel smile appeared on Voldemort's face as he reached his private chambers-now to contact Severus and enlist his help in getting the wayward Malfoy heir….

The following weeks passed uneventfully for Harry and his friends; he and Draco met with their solicitor and took Dumbledore before the Wizengamot where he was fined for his interference in their relationship, and he was also ordered to repay every knut that was taken from Harry's vault without authorization. They attempted to get Dumbledore in trouble for his attack on Harry, but they were unable to prove that he had done it on his own, and so he was not help responsible for costing the cruciatus or falsely accusing the Malfoy's of attacking Harry. The boys were disappointed that Dumbledore got away with the worst of his crimes, and determined to stay away from him as much as possible. Everyone was excited, however, by the fact that it was almost time for the equinox; Harry was especially anxious to see his godfather again, and Draco and their friends had a hard time keeping him calm. The day before Draco and Harry were set to leave for the goblin realm, Dumbledore called Harry to his office after lunch, stating that he was to come alone and tell no one. So Harry went by himself-but he of course told Draco and Hermione who alerted the rest of their friends, and Draco waited down the hall from the headmaster's office for Harry to come back from his meeting.

"Ah, Harry," Dumbledore smiled, "I'm so glad you could make it; Lemon Drop?"

"No thank you Headmaster," Harry replied politely, "If you don't mind, I need to pack since I am leaving for the weekend tomorrow, so can you please get to the point of this meeting? I have a lot of homework to do before I go."

"Of course, of course," Dumbledore agreed, "Actually, I wanted to talk to you about your plans for this weekend. I understand that you and Mr. Malfoy need to see to some of the details of your betrothal, however I was hoping you could put it off for another week."

"Why?"

"Well, I have recently discovered some important information, and I could use your help Harry," Dumbledore replied, "You see, it has come to my attention that Voldemort was able to make himself nearly immortal by creating a number of horcruxes. Horcruxes, Harry are-"

"Very dark magic," Harry interrupted, "You have to split your soul by committing murder; I've been told about them, and I know that they have to be destroyed before Voldemort can finally be defeated. So, why did you call me up here?" Dumbledore was shocked that Harry had already heard about horcruxes, but quickly hid his astonishment.

"Very good," he told the Gryffindor, "You knowing this saves a lot of time. Now, I believe that Voldemort created seven horcruxes, of which you destroyed one back in second year-his diary, if you remember-and I destroyed another one over the summer. I have reason to believe that he sought out items belonging to the founders of Hogwarts to create his horcruxes and I believe that I have found another one."

"That's really good news," Harry grinned, and Dumbledore smiled back at him, "So I guess you'll be going to retrieve it so that it can be destroyed?"

"Of course," Dumbledore replied, "and I know how you hate being left in the dark about things, so I thought that perhaps you would like to some with me? We would leave after dinner tonight and be back by Sunday."

"No thank you," Harry replied, "As you are aware, I already have plans for this weekend, and I can't break a promise to my fiancé. I'm sure one of the Order members would be happy to go with you; how about Moody?"

"Now Harry," Dumbledore frowned, "This is very irresponsible of you; discussing your betrothal is not as important as defeating Voldemort-"

"Maybe not to you," Harry interrupted, "But it is that important for me. Besides, hunting horcruxes is in no way my responsibility; I am only sixteen years old-when the time comes I will fight Voldie if I have to, but I don't see the point in risking my life before then."

"You are being extremely selfish Harry," Dumbledore reprimanded him, "I'm sure Draco would understand if you put this off for one weekend."

"No he wouldn't," Harry replied, "There's some sort of ceremony that can only be done during the equinox, and he's really excited about it, so I am not going to disappoint him. As for being selfish…even Hermione agreed that hunting horcruxes is not my responsibility, so I will leave it in your hands. Now, I still have to get to detention with Snape-"

"Professor Snape, Harry."

"-Whatever. I have to go Headmaster." With that Harry stood up and left the room, leaving a stunned Dumbledore behind.

"That bastard!" Draco scowled,"Dumbledore had better watch his step or I might just find a way to deliver him to Voldie myself!"

Harry hadn't had a chance to talk to Draco right after his meeting with Dumbledore as he truly had had detention with Snape-the professor had caught him throwing something into Goyle's cauldron which could have caused the potion to explode, so he had to give his nephew detention as it could have harmed his other students-and then Draco and Hermione had Prefect duties, so now it was after dinner and their group-Hermione, Ron, Pansy, Theo and Blaise were the only ones that could make it- met in Harry and Draco's room to talk about his meeting with Dumbledore. The group of teens was gathered in the common room, with Harry and Draco sitting on the chair-Harry in Draco's lap per usual-, Ron and Hermione on the loveseat, and the other three Slytherin's on the couch.

"Calm down Dray," Harry soothed him, leaning back further into his fiancés embrace, "We already knew this might happen, and I refused to go with him just as we discussed; he has no leverage over me to make me go, so he can handle the horcruxes himself." He paused and frowned a little, "I still kinda feel like I should be helping him find the horcruxes though, since it's my destiny to kill Voldemort and all."

"I know what you mean," Ron nodded, "It's strange to just sit here when we've always done _something_ to work against Vol-Voldemort; it's like were putting our faith in Dumbledore to get it taken care of."

"I can't imagine how you three did it," Blaise said, "Going up against him every year- you guys were just kids! How did you manage to encounter The Dark-er, V-Voldemort-every year and none of the teachers stopped you? I mean, Dumbledore knows everything that goes on in this school!"

"Hmm, I've never really thought about it before, but you're right Blaise," Hermione mused, "Dumbledore has the portraits keeping an eye on everyone, so one of them was bound to have told him or the other professors what was going on; someone should have shown up to stop us."

"It's obvious that Dumbles wanted you to go through those trials," Pansy said calmly, "He must have been testing Harry to make sure that he would be able to take on Voldemort when the time comes. Not to mention, he was trying to reinforce Harry's hero-complex; did you have such strong urges to protect people before you came to Hogwarts?"

"No," Harry said thoughtfully, "I grew up in a family where I was despised and called a freak on a daily basis, not to mention my cousin would always beat me up and I was blamed for everything, so my reaction was usually to protect myself-which generally meant hiding as fighting back would just cause me to get hurt. I was able to get my revenge later though, mostly by subtly insulting my cousin and then leaving before he could figure it out." He gave a small smirk at the memories, which turned into a smile when Draco pressed a soft kiss into the side of his neck.

"How the hell did you wind up in Gryffindor?" Theo demanded, "That is a very Slytherin mindset; protect yourself at all costs and get revenge when you know you'll get away with it. I really don't see how you managed to wind up in the lion's den."

"Harry is as Gryffindor as they come!" Ron protested, "He's braver than anyone else I've ever met, and he always saves us-"

"But that's what they're saying!" Hermione interrupted, "Yes, Harry is very brave and self-sacrificing, but he wasn't always that way; before he got sorted into Gryffindor he had a much more practical view on things-protect yourself and don't get caught. It was after he got sorted into the house where bravery is its main creed that he started going out of his way to fight against Voldemort; Dumbledore basically molded Harry to become a savior and his perfect little pawn, but he ruined all that with the way he treated Harry last year."

"So you're saying that Dumbledore conditioned me to be like this?" Harry demanded, "What does that mean? I'm not really who I think I am?"

"Of course that's not what they're saying," Draco said soothingly, tightening his arms around Harry's waist, "Dumbledore may have placed you in those situations, but you're the one who chose to act the way you did; you're still you, only maybe a little smarter with a better idea of who to trust. The thing to remember is that Dumbledore no longer has the means to manipulate you, and once Sirius is back you'll have one more person to help you."

"I don't know about that," Harry said uncertainly, "I mean, Sirius has always supported Dumbledore-him, my father and Remus all thought Dumbledore was like the greatest wizard ever; I'm not sure how he'll feel about me breaking ties with the headmaster. Once he comes back, Sirius will be my guardian-what if he makes me help Dumbles with the horcruxes, or tells me to break it off with you?" He looked down at his hands and whispered, "What if he doesn't want me anymore?"

"Oh Harry!" Hermione cried, "Of course Sirius will still want you! He loves you and he won't hold this thing with Dumbledore against you; when you get him back just explain to him what happened and I'm sure he'll understand. As for going after the horcruxes, Sirius won't want you in that type of danger."

"And as for breaking up with me-that's never going to happen," Draco added, "How many times must I tell you that you're mine now-yes, yes Granger, I'm his too-and you're not getting rid of me that easily. Also, in Sirius' will he told you not to trust Dumbledore, so I don't think he'll hold that against you. Now, speaking of Remus, have you spoken to him recently?"

"What? Umm, no," Harry replied, startled by the subject change, "I haven't written to him since before my birthday; so much has been going on that I kinda forgot; he would want to be there tomorrow, do you think your Mother would mind if I invite him?"

"Actually, I already had Sev invite him," Draco replied, "I knew you were feeling somewhat overwhelmed, so I hope you don't mind-"

"Of course I don't!" Harry replied, turning to give Draco a kiss, "Thanks Dray."

"I guess we should get going," Hermione stood up, pulling Ron with her, "You two have to get up early, and I'm sure Harry still needs to pack, so we'll leave the two of you alone. Although…Draco? Do you think your mother would let me borrow the book she's using for the ceremony? I'm really interested in how it works."

"It would never get past the wards," Draco informed her, "The book has a lot of dark rituals in it, and Dumbledore's wards are too strong-if he found out about the book he would confiscate it and we would never get it back."

"Sure you would," Harry argued, "You'd just have to wait until we defeat Dumbles. Don't worry 'Mione; I'm sure Remus will be glad to tell you about the ritual."

"Now that that's settled we really should go," Pansy said, "Dumbledore has been eying all of us suspiciously, and I think he has McGonagall watching us as well; it wouldn't be good to get caught out after hours. Come on boys; let's leave Draco and his lover alone now." She beckoned to Theo and Blaise and they got up with a sigh; Hermione and Ron followed the Slytherin's out of the room, and soon Harry and Draco were alone once more.

"Come on love; let's go to bed," Draco nudged Harry until the other boy stood up and then the two boys headed up the stairs to their bedroom, "I already packed for you as well, so you don't have to worry about anything except getting some sleep."

"Oh good," Harry smiled, tilting his head to look at his lover, "I hate having to pack. Thank you Dray." He leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to Draco's lips before getting changed for bed.

He crawled into the bed and, after Draco joined him, lay down with his head on the blonde's chest, listening to his heartbeat. He felt a soft kiss pressed to the top of his head and then listened as Draco's breathing evened out, indicating that his fiancé was asleep. Harry lay awake for a while after that, just thinking about the events of the past couple of months and worrying about what Sirius would say. Harry knew it was silly to worry about Sirius; his godfather would love him no matter what, right? But Sirius had made his dislike of families like the Malfoy's clear, so what was to stop him from hating Harry now that he was engaged to Draco? He sighed and squirmed uncomfortably for a moment, but stopped when he felt Draco's arm tighten around his waist and another soft kiss to his forehead.

"Stop worrying and go to sleep Luv," Draco murmured, "Everything will be fine." Long fingers gently stroked the nape of his neck, and it didn't take long for Harry to succumb to the relaxing feeling, falling to sleep with a soft smile on his lips.

*****************************************************************************************************************************************Author's Note*********So, a bit more going on in this chapter-confrontation with Dumbledore, conversation with the minister…and another confrontation with Dumbles. Next chapter will have the boys rescuing Sirius, and we will finally see Remus! I hope you liked it; please review and let me know what you think!**


	21. Chapter 21

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

"Ugh; it's too early to be awake," Harry complained as he followed a yawning Draco out of their rooms, "Remind me why we have to get up at this ungodly hour again?"

"Because Sev likes to torture you," Draco replied, "and also so that we can avoid annoying people who don't know how to mind their own business."

"But it isn't even light out yet!" Harry protested, "Leaving at four a.m. is just insane!"

"Mr. Potter; Mr. Malfoy-what are you doing out so late?" The two boys spun around to see Professor McGonagall glaring down at them, "You chose not to be a Prefect this year Mr. Malfoy, so you don't have any excuse to be out after curfew."

"You've got it all wrong," Harry said calmly, "We're not out-"

"Excuse me, Mr. Potter, but when have I ever given you the impression that I am stupid?" McGonagall interrupted, "You are very clearly out after curfew, as I can see you, and you will return to your rooms immediately. That's fifteen points from Gryffindor and fifteen from Slytherin; in addition I expect to see you both in detention this evening."

"You can't do that!" Harry cried, "Draco and I have-"

"That's another ten points for arguing with a professor," McGonagall snapped, "as well as another night's detention Mr. Potter. Now, as I said before it's time for you to-"

"No!" Harry interrupted her, "Why won't you just listen? We're supposed to be-" But Draco didn't hear what he wanted to say next because McGonagall had cast a silencing spell on Harry-and, on him as well, as he discovered when he tried to speak up.

"That is quite enough," McGonagall said furiously, "I can't believe you have such little respect for me Mr. Potter; I thought that perhaps Albus was exaggerating when he said that Mr. Malfoy was influencing you against us, but now I see that he was right. I'm deducting another twenty-five points from Gryffindor, and you have two weeks of detention with me. Now, let's go see the headmaster; I'm sure there is a clause regarding betrothed couples which allows for them to be separated if one is negatively affecting the other, and I intend to have it enforced-now march!"

"What exactly do you think you are doing Minerva?" Harry and Draco shared a relieved look as that cold, drawling voice reached their ears.

"It's none of your concern," McGonagall replied coldly, "However I am taking the boys up to see the headmaster; they were out after curfew and when I attempted to send them back to their rooms they argued with me. Albus will take care of this and if I have any say in the matter they will spend a minimum of two weeks sleeping in their house dorms."

"That won't be necessary," Snape informed her, "You see Minerva, the boys were on their way to meet me in the Great Hall; perhaps you recall the fact that I am taking them to meet up with Narcissa this weekend? Well, they are ten minutes late, so I decided to come look for them, and it's a good thing I did too. Of course, I don't understand why they didn't just explain all this to you…" he trailed off, arching a brow at the boys who began making motions to indicate that they were unable to speak.

"Mr. Potter was talking back to me," McGonagall defended herself, "so I cast a silencing spell on both of the boys; they need to learn how to respect professors!" Severus merely narrowed his eyes at her and removed the hex before addressing the boy.

"Why didn't you explain the situation before she hexed you?" he demanded.

"I tried!" Harry protested, "Every time I tried to explain she just interrupted me and took more points! Then, she gave me two weeks of detention, and you heard her threaten to separate us; she said that Draco is influencing me to behave badly!"

"Well, I hardly think you need Draco's influence to behave badly," Severus drawled, "and since this was all a misunderstanding you can disregard the points taken away and the detentions; as for separating the boys," he leveled his glare on the Transfiguration professor, who had the grace to look slightly ashamed, "not even the headmaster has the authorization to do that-it would have to be approved by the School Governors, and they would never authorize separating the boys. Now, if you will excuse us, we are on a schedule. Good day Minerva; come along boys." He swept down the corridor, ushering the boys in front of him.

"She was acting weird," Harry commented as they rounded the corner, "McGonagall has always been fair, and always gives students a chance to explain, but tonight she wouldn't listen to anything."

"I believe Albus has convinced her that you are the next Dark Lord," Severus informed him, "You should be careful around her from now on."

"Why not get him re-sorted?" Draco suggested, "Since we have our own room he won't have to go into the Slytherin common room, and then he would answer to you for punishments."

"That idea has merit," Severus acknowledged, "but it is up to Harry." He looked at his nephew as they continued walking out the front doors and towards the apparition point, "If you want to be re-sorted you can request it at dinner when we get back; there hasn't been a re-sort in over a hundred years, but you seem to be the exception to everything, so why not this as well?"

"It doesn't really matter now," Harry shrugged, "It's not like I live in the dorms anymore or anything, but if it gets bad I'll think about it. Speaking of which, where are we meeting Remus?"

"The wolf will be waiting for us at my home," Severus replied, "We really should hurry as we're already running late. Now, I'm going to side-along apparate the two of you, so hold on." They were standing just outside the gates, and Harry and Draco each grabbed on to one of Snape's arms. A few dizzying moments later and the small group arrived at Snape Manor, where a worn looking man with grey-tinged brown hair was waiting for them.

"Harry!" the man cried out a greeting as they appeared, and Harry broke away from the two Slytherin's to give his honorary godfather a hug.

"Remus!" Harry cried as the werewolf held him tight, "I'm so sorry I haven't written to you, but things have been really crazy and I have so much to tell you and-hey!" He glared at Draco as the blonde pulled him away from Remus, wrapping his own arms around his waist possessively, "What's your problem Draco?"

"No problem," Draco replied sweetly, kissing his cheek even as he glared at Remus, "but we really are running late Luv, and Mother is bound to be worried; you can catch up with Mr. Lupin when we get to the castle. Besides," his tone turned wheedling, "I'm hungry, and we can't eat until we get there; aren't you ready to go?"

"Fine," Harry sighed, "but I still want to know why you're acting all possessive; Remus is family."

"And you're mine," Draco replied matter-of-factly, "but I'm not acting possessive. Now, is everyone ready to go? Good." Without waiting for a response he walked through the living room and to the door to Severus' office and opened a portal to the goblin realm.

"Draco! Harry!" they found themselves in the sitting room they had been using over the summer and were immediately greeted by Narcissa who gave them each a hug, "It's good to have you boys back; the house goblins have prepared a large breakfast in honor of you boys. Severus; it's good to see you again; I hope things are going well? And Mr. Lupin, how are you?" She gave Severus a kiss on the cheek and offered her hand to Remus.

"Slow down and let us talk Cissa," Severus said, "Why don't we have breakfast, and then we can discuss the ceremony in detail."

"Oooh, that will be fun," they heard a dreamy voice from just beyond the doorway, "I can't wait to sing the incantation! Weasley is our king!" She danced off down the hallway singing.

"Wait-how and why is Luna here?" Harry asked, "I didn't know she was coming."

"It was a surprise to me as well," Narcissa said drily, "I walked down here to meet you guys, and there Luna was, spinning in circles and humming. When I asked her what she was doing here she said that she would be needed and the humdingers told her to come. I still don't know how she got here though-she hasn't been taught to open the portals yet."

"Well, you know Luna will never give you a straight answer, so we might as well not worry about it," Draco said, "I, for one, am hungry, so shall we retire to the dining room?"

"I actually had everything set up out in the garden," Narcissa informed them, "So come along now boys." She linked arms with Harry and Draco and led the way out of the room, leaving Remus and Severus to follow.

The group had a leisurely breakfast, discussing inconsequential things such as school work and the new minister. Luna entertained them all with a story about ever-flying evergeens-which she stated were creatures shaped like evergreen trees with wings of pure gold; they evidently made their homes in the branches of real evergreen trees and protected them from harm. Well, everyone but Severus was entertained-Severus was just annoyed and had to take a headache potion lest he lose his sanity.

"Well, the equinox won't occur until eleven p.m.," Narcissa announced as they stood up from the table, "Our celebration begins at five with dinner and dancing, but not much else happens before then. Severus and I will need to spend the next few hours preparing everything for the ritual so that we are ready when the time comes; you are welcome to help us Remus-we do need someone to say the incantation."

"I need to say the incantation," Luna protested, "Moony will be needed for something else when the time comes." Narcissa studied her niece for a moment before nodding.

"Very well Luna," she conceded, "You have been right before and I did not listen to you so this time I shall take your advice and allow you to participate in the ceremony. Why don't we go into the study and Severus and I can fill you in on the details of the ceremony and what each of you will need to do." She led the way back to the sitting room where they all arranged themselves among the furniture, with Harry and Draco sitting together as per usual; Harry had tried to sit on the couch, but Draco grabbed him by the hand and led him over to one of the arm chair, pulling the embarrassed brunette into his lap.

"Must you flaunt yourselves so?" Severus demanded, "I know Mr. Potter is attention starved, but I thought you at least had more sense Draco."

"That's it!" Remus stood up and advanced on the potions master, "I am sick of you always insulting Harry! If you have a prob-"

"Remus, don't," Harry interrupted, "Sev and I have come to an understanding; I guess I forgot to tell you that he's my uncle?" He looked at Remus sheepishly while the werewolf gaped at him, "Ummm, yeah, long story but Dumbledore kidnapped my Mum and aunt Petunia when they were little and gave them to a Muggle couple and then changed everyone's memory, but somehow Mum found out and Dumbledore forbid her to tell Uncle Sev as long as she lived so she used a recording sphere which I gave him a couple months ago and we have been trying to get along ever since. Sorry I forgot to tell you…"

"Th-that's okay Cub," Remus said uncertainly, "Severus and Lily were siblings?"

"Twins, actually," Severus replied calmly, "I apologized to Potter-oh fine brat; _Harry_," Severus corrected himself after a mock-glare from Harry-"I apologized to Harry and we have been working to have a relationship."

"Sev helps keep me safe from Dumbledore's manipulations," Harry said cheerfully, "Ow! What was that for?" He rubbed his cheek which had just been hit with a mild stinging hex from Severus.

"I have told you about calling me Sev," he replied, "You are not to call me that; next time I will-"

"Use him for potions ingredients," Draco interrupted, earning himself a scowl from Severus, "Yes, yes; we know. So, Mother-what will this ceremony entail?"

"Well, you and Harry won't have to do much," Narcissa smiled, "The hardest part will be getting Lucius into the Realm of the Veil, however Severus has brewed a potion that will knock Lucius unconscious long enough for us to do the ceremony. The two of you will hold hands while Luna recites the incantation and each of you will have one hand on Lucius so that the three of you are transported into the veil," she addressed the rest of the room, "Before that, however, Severus and Harry will drink a binding potion, as will Draco and I, and Draco and Harry will also drink a binding potion-this will make it so that Harry and Draco will stay in contact while beyond the veil, and it will also strengthen their ties to Severus and myself, and thus to this world. We will use the Black family crest that we got out of the vault to open to door between the realms, and then Harry and Draco will take it with them and use it to locate Sirius. Once you locate him, Sirius will know the counter spell to get the doorway open again. Now, we only have until midnight, so you must hurry while you're in the veil. Any questions?"

"What can I do?" Remus asked, "I would like to help get Sirius back-and make sure Harry manages to get out of that veil-thing alive; he has a knack for getting in trouble."

"Hey!" Harry protested, "I have a knack for trouble? What about you, Mr. Marauder? I saw those files in Filch's office you know; yours was thicker than mine!"

"I think he means to say you get into a lot of life-threatening situations," Draco pointed out, "Do trolls, three-headed dogs, giant spiders and dragons ring any bells?"

"None of that was my fault," Harry pouted, "It was all a conspiracy."

"I believe you Harry," Luna said solemnly, "everyone knows that the Rotfang Conspiracy is after you; it is entirely plausible that they have been trying to sabotage you since you started school so that you won't be able to oppose them when you leave Hogwarts."

"Of course," Severus said smoothly, "It must be the Rotfang Conspiracy, and not Harry's need to investigate every mysterious occurrence that goes on at Hogwarts." Harry glared at him and crossed his arms, pouting.

"Well, back to the ceremony," Narcissa smiled, "The ritual only calls for five people in addition to the ones being traded, so I really don't know-"

"I may be able to come up with something," Severus said, "But perhaps we should give Luna the incantation so that she has time to become familiar with it."

"Of course," Narcissa agreed, handing Luna a small scroll, "I don't expect you to memorize the whole thing, but it will be easier if you read through it a few time to make sure you have the pronunciation correct; I'll read through it with you once if you…" she trailed off as Luna picked up the scroll and skipped out of the room without so much as a good-bye. "Well…I will check on her later. I believe we have gone over everything of importance; I know Harry didn't get to see much outside of the castle during the summer, so perhaps you boys would like to explore a bit?"

"That sounds like fun," Harry smiled, "I remember when I first got here we were standing in that purple field, with the stream and the blue forest nearby?"

"Amethyst Fields," Draco replied promptly, "We can go spend some time out there, and perhaps arrange for a goblin to bring us a picnic lunch?"

"A wonderful idea," Narcissa approved, "I will take care of lunch, and we may even join you. Now, I know you boys left some of your casual clothes here, so why don't you go change and enjoy the day."

"Yes Mother," Draco smiled as Harry slid off his lap and they each stooped to give her a kiss on the cheek before leaving the room.

"I have news from the Dark Lord," Severus announced once the boys were gone, "He has contacted me and ordered me bring Harry to him by Christmas; he wants me to use Draco, and he believes that once he turns Draco to his side that he will be able to invade the Realm as well."

"Well, we knew he would try something eventually," Narcissa frowned, "What I want to know is why he thinks Draco can get him in here…"

"It was Parkinson," Severus said, "It seems the Dark Lord broke through the memory block that Lucius put on, and he had Bellatrix, Crabbe, Goyle and Nott torture him overnight; that was two nights ago and he is still recovering from it. Not that I feel particularly sorry for it, Parkinson was never a nice person and he was only too eager to turn Harry over…"

"Are you going to tell him?" Remus questioned, "If you don't turn Harry over then Voldemort will just find someone else to do the job-don't Crabbe and Goyle have sons in the same year as Harry?"

"Yes," Severus nodded, "But Harry knows not to trust him and Draco has stopped speaking to them; they do still speak to Theodore Nott, Blaise Zambini and Parkinson's daughter Pansy, but Draco feels that all three of them are trustworthy…before we return to the school I will tell the boys and make sure they are more careful. Now, I had an idea of how you can help with the ritual…"

"I still can't believe how beautiful it is here," Harry breathed once Draco had apparated them to the edge of Amethyst Fields, "It really took my breath away when you first brought me here."

"I remember," Draco smiled softly, before smirking, "You stood here and wasted ten minutes staring at the landscape and then yelled at me for not telling you that the time had started."

"Well, it was rude," Harry pouted, "And it was also unsportsman-like; you can't really expect someone who has never seen something like this before to come to the realm and _not_ be affected!"

"I suppose you're right," Draco mused, "Can you really blame me though? You knew I would do anything to win, and I _am_ a Slytherin after all." He walked up behind Harry and put his arms around his waist, "Are you really upset at the way things turned out Lion?"

"No," Harry replied softly, tilting his head back to smile at his fiancé, "I'm a bit surprised-well, actually more than a bit surprised-that we wound up together, and that we are no longer enemies. I really can't believe I fell in love with a prat like you, and so quickly too…"

"Well, part of that was the labyrinth," Draco said hesitantly, "It doesn't change the way you feel about someone, but the enchantment put there by Merlin makes the two parties involved realize their feelings more quickly than they would normally. Just take us for instance-if we had called a truce at school it probably would have been at least a month before I even tried to kiss you, much less do anything else, but since I can only find "true love" through the labyrinth and we have a thirteen hour time constraint the enchantment locates our deepest feelings and brings them to the surface in a way that will allow us to deal with them and see if we are compatible."

"Okay," Harry said slowly, "So you're saying if I had given you a chance at school we would have still wound up where we are, only it would have taken longer?"

"Exactly," Draco smiled down at him, brushing their lips together in a brief kiss, "and I, for one, am rather glad we didn't have to go through months of indecision before reaching this point."

"I'm glad too," Harry agreed before pulling away and turning around to smile at the blonde, "Can we go for a walk in the woods?"

"Sure," Draco nodded, taking his hand and leading the way, "It's safest to stay by the stream so that we can find our way out, but there's this place I want to show you; come on." He tugged on Harry's hand and led him into the forest, weaving around trees and bushes on a path that Draco could evidently see but was indiscernible to Harry. As they walked Draco pointed out some of the different plants and at one point they were ambushed by a flock of what appeared to be jewel-colored hummingbirds, but they enjoyed the walk and then Draco came to a sudden stop, turning to face Harry.

"I want you to see this from the best vantage point," he said, "so close your eyes and don't open them until I tell you to, okay?"

"I suppose I can do that," Harry grinned and closed his eyes; Draco stood behind him and used his hands on the brunette's shoulders to guide him further into the forest. It was strange for Harry to realize how much he trusted Draco now, when a few months ago he would have sooner hexed the blonde than allow him to lead Harry around blind.

"Stand right here," Draco commanded, pulling Harry to a stop, "Turn a little this way and…" Harry felt Draco's hands drop away, and then he was told, "Open your eyes now Harry." Harry opened his eyes and gasped in amazement; they were standing in the middle of a forest clearing which was illuminated by bright golden sunlight. Instead of the blue trees that were in the rest of the forest, the ring of trees around the clearing had bright green foliage and some of them had jewel-bright flowers where some of the hummingbirds they had seen earlier were flying around. The silver stream ran across the clearing but widened into a small pool in the middle with a moss-covered rock next to it. At the edge of the clearing behind them was a tree with a branch overhanging the stream and a vine swing hung down from it, while at the other side of the clearing three trees grew close enough together that their tops formed a canopy; underneath those trees was a pile of cushions and pillows with an emerald green blanket. He finally finished gawking at the clearing and looked over to where Draco was standing and watching him with shining silver eyes.

"Now this is really amazing," Harry said, "Did you make this clearing?"

"I added a few things," Draco admitted, "like the swing there, and the bed over on that side; I used to come out here a lot during the summer when I just needed to get away from everyone." He stepped up closer to Harry once again, placing a hand on his waist, "You're the first person I've ever shown it to, and I'm glad you like it."

"How could I not?" Harry laughed softly, "It's beautiful." He took Draco's hand and pulled him over to the swing, "Push me Dray?" He gave his lover puppy dog eyes and Draco shook his head smiling.

"Fine," he laughed, "I'll push you for a bit, but then you owe me."

"Yeah, whatever," Harry rolled his eyes, "I'm always owing you for something; at this rate I'll be indebted to you for the rest of my life." He grinned as he sat down on the swing.

"Now you know my secret plan," Draco teased, "I figure if I continue to do favors for you then you'll owe me so many favors in return that you'll never be able to leave me." He walked around behind the swing and gave Harry a push; soon the swing was going high and Draco smiled as his lover threw his head back laughing-he would never get over the way Harry looked when he was genuinely happy and not worrying about anything, his emerald eyes sparkled even more brightly than the actual gems and he just looked so young and carefree…

A little while later Harry was finished with the swing and he allowed Draco to lead him over to the pile of cushions on the far side of the clearing, laughing again when Draco gave him a gentle shove making him fall backwards onto the soft pile. Draco quickly followed him down, placing one hand on either side of Harry's head and stretching his body out to cover the smaller boy's. Harry wrapped his arms around Draco's neck and pulled him in for a long slow kiss. Harry may have initiated the kiss, but Draco quickly took control of it, licking and nipping at Harry's mouth and leisurely exploring the warm, wet cavern with his tongue. When he pulled back to get some air he looked down at Harry, admiring the faint red stain across his cheeks and the unchecked lust in his eyes.

"Dray," Harry whispered once he got his breath back under control, "I…I want…" he trailed off uncertainly, before locking his gaze with Draco's and then said; "Dray-I want you. Please." Draco's eyes widened as he looked down at his lover and then gave him a sweet kiss before pulling back to look at him again.

"Are you sure Harry?" he asked, "I know you wanted to wait, and I don't want to rush into this if you're not ready."

"I'm sure," Harry smiled, "I wanted to wait so that it would be special, but what could be more special than having our first time here?"

"Okay," Draco agreed, returning his smile with a wicked one of his own, "But we'll do this my way Lion." He leaned in for another kiss, at the same time vanishing their clothes with a wandless, non-verbal spell that left Harry breathless. Draco trailed his hands from Harry's hips, up his sides to his shoulders, barely-there touches that had Harry squirming as Draco continued to dominate his mouth. Once Harry was suitably breathless, Draco kissed his way over to his lover's ear, licking the rim before sucking on the lobe; he trailed his hands back down Harry's chest, tweaking his nipples and making him moan.

"Draco," Harry tightened his arms around the blondes neck and lifted a leg to wrap it around his lovers waist in an attempt to draw him closer.

"Be patient Luv," Draco chuckled, "I'm going to make sure that this is a day you never forget, so just lay back and relax; I'll take care of you Lion." He trailed his lips from Harry's earlobes down his throat, leaving a trail of burning kisses in his wake until he came to his favorite spot on the brunette's collarbone; there was still a fading purple bruise from the last time he had marked Harry and he quickly set about renewing it, causing Harry to gasp and buck into him. When he was satisfied with the mark Draco continued tracing a path down Harry's body, pausing to lick and suck at the sensitive nipples; Harry mewled at the sensations and tangled his hands in blonde locks to urge Draco onward. The Slytherin complied, leaving more biting kisses in a trail down his chest and across his toned abs, stopping just before reaching Harry's engorged member.

"Don't stop," Harry begged, planting both feet flat on the ground and arching up in an effort to get more contact, "Please Dray…"

"How can I say no to that?" Draco smiled softly, pressing a soft kiss to the inside of Harry's thigh before licking the tip of his leaking prick. He moved his hands down to Harry's hips to hold him still as he wrapped his mouth around the brunette's cock, smirking at the breathless moans he pulled from his lover. After a few moments Draco pulled away and located his wand, but Harry stopped him before he could summon some lube.

"I, um, I actually brought something," he blushed, "I brought some of the lube from the twins, and it's in the pocket of my robe…wherever you vanished it to." He frowned at the blonde, but Draco merely grinned in response and wordlessly summoned the lube from Harry's clothes, which had been banished to the swing.

"You certainly were awfully cocky, hmm Lion?" he teased, "You really think you're that irresistible?"

"It's not that," Harry's blush deepened, "It's just…I have been thinking about this for a couple of weeks now, so I thought it would be better to be prepared."

"Well, just so you know, you are irresistible Harry," Draco leaned up to give him a sweet kiss, "Let me know if I go to fast for you, okay?" Harry nodded breathlessly, as Draco moved back down and returned to his previous actions; he used one hand to hold Harry down as he went to work on Harry's hardened member while he used the other hand to open the tube of lubricant; once he managed to get a sufficient amount out of the tub he trailed his fingers up Harry's crack and pressed on slickened digit slowly in his tight hole. Harry gasped as he was breached by the first finger, but it didn't take him long to adjust to Draco pumping it in and out of him, so soon the blonde added a second finger and began scissoring them inside Harry and the Gryffindor moaned in pleasure. Once he got used to two fingers moving inside him, Draco added a third finger, and Harry winced at the slight sting, but then his fingers were hitting that spot that made him see stars and Harry began thrusting his hips, trying to get.-

"More!" he pleaded, "Please Dray; I'm ready! Want you inside me; now!" He squirmed as Draco continued to lick his cock and finger his hole for a few more moments and then let out a disappointed whine when the blonde removed his fingers and released Harry's cock at the same time. Draco quickly covered his aching member with a good amount of lube, eager to finally be inside of Harry.

"Shhh," Draco moved up to place a kiss on Harry's lips as he lined his erection up with Harry's now-twitching hole, "This is going to hurt a bit, but just relax, okay love?" Harry nodded uncertainly, but his green eyes were filled with love and trust, so Draco slowly moved forward until the tip of his erection passed that first ring of muscles. The pain made Harry screw his eyes closed as he fought to breath normally, and he couldn't help the whimper that escaped as Draco continued to press into him; the blonde moved slowly but relentlessly forward, pressing soft kisses to Harry's lips, his cheeks, and his closed eyelids in reassurance. When he was finally fully seated in the brunette Draco stopped moving and instead began caressing Harry's sides and torso in an effort to help him relax; he gently stroked Harry's member and soon tear-filled emerald eyes were looking up at him, so he leaned in and kissed his lover, taking his breath away. When they finally separated to breath Harry locked gazes with his silver-eyed lover and said, "Move. Now." His voice brooked no arguments, so Draco slowly pulled out until only his tip remained inside Harry, and then he snapped his hips forward, impaling him once again.

"Wrap your legs around me Harry," Draco commanded and the brunette obeyed, using his quidditch-toned thighs to pull Draco even closer. Draco groaned at the tight heat surrounding him and leaned down to whisper in Harry's ear, "I've wanted you so badly; hold on Lion, because I plan to make sure you can feel me for the next week." With a soft nip on the brunette's earlobe, Draco sat back, moving Harry's legs from around his waist up to his shoulders so that he could get a better angle, and began a slow, hard pace that had Harry moaning and thrusting down to meet him. Draco gripped Harry's hips in both hands and changed angles again, looking for that certain spot…

"Merlin; Draco!" the blonde smirked as Harry threw his head back, his eyes closed in pleasure, "That felt-aah!" Draco hit that spot again, and Harry forgot what he was saying as the blonde tightened his grip on Harry's hips, making sure that he wouldn't be able to move away now that Draco found the angle he wanted. Harry moaned and whimpered in pleasure, and he was vaguely aware of the harsh pants coming out of Draco's mouth as the Slytherin increased the speed of his thrusts. Harry could feel himself getting closer and reached down to touch himself, but Draco knocked his hand away, and a moment later her found flowering vines wrapped around his wrist, pulling his arms taut above his head.

"Uh-uh Harry," Draco smirked, "Today, I get to do all the touching; first though, I need you to tell me…"

"T-tell you what?" Harry gasped out, "Please, Dray…"

"Tell me how it feels," Draco whispered, "How does it feel to have my cock thrusting deep inside you, driving you towards the edge, filling you up? Mmmm….being inside you feels so good Harry; I love the way your tight walls clench around me; can you imagine what it will feel like when your clenching muscles finally pull me over the edge and I spill myself inside you?"

"Oh Merlin Draco!" Harry cried out, pulling at his bonds as he craved touch on his aching cock, "Please! Want you so bad; want you to make me cum…want you to cum inside me, filling me up…I need you Draco! Please touch me; please! So close!"

"You look so sexy like that Lion," Draco purred, "Writhing beneath me, your face flushed as you pull at you bonds…Merlin, I love you so much Harry!" Draco could tell that he and Harry both were near to climax, so he wrapped one pale hand around Harry's weeping member and began pumping him in time with his thrusts; he leaned down so that he could nip and lick at Harry's lips before kissing behind Harry's ear and commanding; "Come for me Lion; I want to see you come undone beneath me, spilling your seed between us as your clenching ass muscles make me lose all control…Come for me Harry." He snapped his hips forward once again, going even deeper than before, and was rewarded with a pleasure-filled cry from Harry as he fell over the edge, streams of cum decorating both their chests. Just as he'd predicted, the feel of Harry's tight channel convulsing around him was enough to make Draco lose control as well, and he pumped his hips a couple more times before spilling his seed deep inside Harry.

When he finally came down from that glorious high, Draco was still seated inside Harry, whose hands were carding through his hair; Harry pressed soft kisses to the side of Draco's neck as they got their breath back, and both felt utterly content.

"That was amazing Harry," Draco said softly, turning his head to capture Harry's lips in a soft, sweet kiss, "It was better than I ever imagined." He carefully pulled out of his lover and frowned when he noticed Harry's wince of pain; "I was too rough, wasn't I?"

"No Dray," Harry gave him a sweet smile, "I've heard from other people that you're always sore after your first time, but it should fade soon; besides-" he gave him and impish grin, "-I thought you wanted me to feel you inside me for the next week."

"Prat," Draco scowled at him, but his lips twitched as he fought back a smile, "Next time I'll make it so you can't sit for a month."

"I'd like to see you try," Harry challenged, scooting over to lay his head on Draco's chest, "Only…maybe not today. I could use a cleansing charm right now though."

"And I suppose you expect me to take care of it?" Draco drawled, and Harry 'hmm'ed' in agreement, so the blonde reached out for his wand and cast a quick cleansing charm before relaxing with Harry's comforting weight on top of him. He reached a hand up to card his fingers through that unruly black hair and was rewarded with a soft sound of contentment from his lover.

"Mmmm, feels good," Harry murmured sleepily, "Love you Dray."

"I love you too Lion," Draco responded, and the two soon drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

"Okay, is everyone ready?" Severus inquired, "It's time to start."

Harry and Draco had napped in the woods for a couple of hours before getting dressed and returning to Amethyst Fields to meet Luna, Narcissa, Severus and Remus for lunch, after which they had enjoyed some of the festivities in honor of the equinox. The whole afternoon Remus had been giving the boys strange looks, and Harry was certain that the werewolf knew, but he hadn't confronted the boys yet, so Harry had decided not to worry about it until he had to. Now it was a couple of minutes before eleven P.M. and the group had gathered in the ballroom, with the exception of Remus who was bringing Lucius up from the dungeons.

"We're ready Uncle Sev," Draco said cheekily, earning himself a glare from his godfather, "We already took the potions, so we're just waiting for Remus to bring Father up so we can start."

"I just hope this works," Harry said softly, and Draco took his hand, squeezing it in reassurance. Harry offered him a small smile, but the door opened before they could say anything else, and Remus entered, levitating and unconscious Lucius Malfoy.

"The spell I used will keep him out for about an hour," Remus said, setting Lucius' body in the center of the chalk circle that had been prepared earlier, "and Narcissa said you have to be back by midnight or you risk being trapped in the veil, so you need to move quickly."

"We know Remus;" Harry assured him, "Get in, find Sirius, leave Lucius, and get out; sound like a plan to me. Can we start now?"

"So impatient," Severus scowled, "One would think you enjoy risking your life." He and Harry glared at each other for a few seconds, but Severus broke first, sighing as he laid one hand on Harry's shoulder and the other on Draco's; "You two be careful, and make sure you come back to us. Draco-I'm counting on you to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid." Draco smirked while Harry stuck out his tongue, and then they were being embrace by Narcissa, who gave them each a kiss on the forehead and implored them to be safe.

"We must start now," Severus said, and Harry and Draco took their places in the circle facing each other, one at Lucius' feet and the other at his head. Severus nodded towards the corner where Luna was encased in a sound-proof bubble-her idea as she said it would keep the wrackspurts from distracting her-and they watched her lips move as she began the incantation. After a few seconds a pale blue light rose up around the boys, getting darker and darker as the incantation continued until they were completely obscured from the sight of the others.

At Draco's slight nod Harry took the Black family crest from his robe pocket and with his other hand pointed his wand at Lucius' prone body; Draco copied the wand movement, and soon they had him floating as they waited for the door between the realms to open. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity but was surely only a few minutes, a familiar stone archway with a tattered veil appeared, and Harry's heart gave a lurch. The boys weren't allowed to speak until they crossed the veil, but they locked gazes and began to move forward together, levitating Lucius between them. Harry took a deep breath as they stepped through the veil, and shivered as he felt like he was drenched in ice-cold water.

"This place is rather creepy," Draco noted, "Very…grey. Still not as bad as the dungeons used to be however." The land of the veil was indeed grey, with mists completely surrounding them; by unspoken agreement Draco took over the levitation so that Harry could cast a lumos, enabling them to see a bit better in the dreary landscape.

"I don't know," Harry mused, "It's much colder here than your dungeons were; anyway, they look much better now that you and Narcissa redecorated." He shivered again and was grateful when Draco moved closer to wrap an arm around his waist. "Well, come on then; we'd better find Sirius." As he spoke the Black artifact he had gotten out of the family vault let off a soft glow, so he spoke again; "Locate Sirius Black." The artifact began to glow brightly, illuminating a faint path in the foggy landscape, so Harry and Draco followed it.

Neither boy was sure how long they walked, but they were unnerved by the fact that they didn't encounter anyone else, and the dreary fog was beginning to affect their mood when Harry caught sight of a dejected-looking figure just in front of them.

"Sirius?" He called out, and the figure jerked his head around, staring wide-eyed at Harry and Draco.

"H-Harry?" Sirius said uncertainly, "Pup? Is that you? No! No; can't be Harry-it's another lie, more lies upon lies! Very clever you are, bringing Narcissa's boy with you, but it's not real; I know it's not real. Can't fool me, not anymore." Sirius was sitting on the ground, arms wrapped around his knees and rocking back and forth as he muttered to himself.

"No Sirius, it's really me," Harry protested, feeling heartbroken at the sight of his godfather, "It really is Harry! You saved me that night at the ministry Padfoot, but I was so lost without you! I swore I'd get you back, and I found people to help me…please look at me." The gaunt man looked up at Harry, his dark hair more disheveled than ever and his grey eyes haunted. Harry knelt before him and held out the artifact he had used to find Sirius. Sirius looked at it blankly for a moment before reaching out a shaking hand; as soon as he touched the crest, it began to glow even brighter than before, and Draco grabbed Harry by the arm, pulling him away from the blinding light, tucking Harry's head into his neck to protect him. Finally the light faded and Draco loosened his grip, so Harry turned around and saw Sirius standing completely still with his head bowed.

"Sirius-?" Harry called uncertainly, but Draco placed a hand on his arm to keep him from going to his godfather, "Sirius! Are you…?"

"Harry Pup," Sirius looked up with a smile on his face, and Harry let out a relieved laugh when those previously grey eyes met his and he saw that they were once more full of warmth and light, "Harry!" Sirius cried happily, running towards his godson; Draco stepped back to allow the two men a moment to connect, watching with a small smile as the two hugged each other tightly. He allowed them a few moments to themselves, before reluctantly stepping forward.

"Harry," he said softly, "We need to go; there's no telling how long we've been in here, and we don't want to be stuck."

"R-right," Harry said shakily, pulling away from his godfather, "We only had an hour to rescue you Sirius, so we should probably leave."

"How did you even manage?" Sirius asked him, eying Draco warily, "I remember reading about the veil when I was younger, and there has to be an exchange…"

"Hence my father," Draco gestured to the elder blonde lying on the ground not far away, "He has finally done something…completely unforgivable, and Mother agreed to trade him for you."

"I never thought I'd see the day when a Malfoy would sell out another Malfoy," Sirius sneered, "So what's in it for you?"

"Harry," Draco said simply, "I would do anything in my power to make him happy."

"Except making Pansy and Hermione stop their plots to turn me into the new dark lord," Harry pouted, "I can't be a dark lord, because I won't kill people!"

"Well, you can stick to grey magic," Draco told him, "then we can still call you a dark lord; the name is just to strike fear into the hearts of those who would otherwise no respect you. Once you get rid of Tom I'm sure you won't have much opposition, and it will be easy for all of us to improve relations between purebloods and muggleborns."

"Okay, now I know this isn't real," Sirius said as he watched Draco kiss Harry on the cheek, "I must have truly gone crazy."

"You aren't crazy," Harry laughed, "At least, no more than you were before; we really should go though; we'll explain everything when we get back. Narcissa said you can open the doorway by putting a drop of blood on the family crest, and I think we should hurry because Lucius is stirring." He nodded at the elder Malfoy, who was indeed showing signs of regaining consciousness. Sirius looked like he wanted to argue, but held his tongue and pulled a small knife out of his pocket to cut his finger; he let the blood drop onto the crest, and the doorway appeared. The boys insisted that Sirius go first, practically pushing him, and then they linked hands to follow him. Draco was just stepping through the doorway when Harry pulled his hand away, and Draco heard a whispered, "Mum?"

"Harry!" Draco cried, grasping for his hand again, "Don't let go, you idiot!" He grabbed for Harry's hand again, and the brunette pulled him back into the veil, not seeming to notice Draco at all.

"Mum! Dad!" Harry cried, running deeper into the mist; Draco couldn't see anything, but he kept a firm hold on Harry's hand and followed him, not willing to risk letting him go.

"Harry! Harry, stop!" Draco protested, "There's no one here! Harry!"

"I heard them!" Harry said, looking over his shoulder at Draco with wild eyes, "I heard Mum and Dad; they were calling me and I have to find them!"

"Harry James Potter!" Draco dug his heels in, forcing Harry to stop, "You had better stop this instant and _think_! Why would your parents be here? They didn't pass through the veil; this is an in-between world, and they are _not_ here! You just saved Sirius; do you really want him to live with the guilt of you being stuck here instead of him?"

"N-no," Harry said uncertainly, his eyes spilling over with tears, "But…I heard them Dray; I heard my parents! Why can't I see them? It's not fair!" He buried his head in Draco's chest and began to sob.

"Shh, hush Lion," Draco soothed him, "I know it's not fair, and we can never bring your parents back, but you can see them; when we get back to school you can use the birthday gift I gave you and visit them." Harry's sobs grew quieter, and Draco adjusted his hold on the brunette until he could lift the smaller boy into his arms and carry him, ignoring Harry's protests. It took him a few minutes to locate the door Sirius had opened, but he finally made it and stepped through, sighing when they were greeted by the sound of arguing.

"You are the adult!" Severus was shouting, "It was your responsibility to make sure the boys came home safe! How can you be so irresponsible with someone you claim to love like a son?"

"How was I supposed to know they wouldn't follow me?" Sirius retorted, "Neither one of them acted like they wanted to stay, and why would they!"

"Really?" Harry spoke up from where he was cradled in Draco's arms, and the adults spun around to stare at them, "Sirius has only been back what, five minutes? And you're already fighting? I guess I really shouldn't be surprised…"

"Harry!" "Pup" Severus and Sirius cried at the same time, both of them rushing towards the boys.

"Malfoy! What did you do to Harry?" Severus glowered, attempting to take Harry out of the blonde's arms.

"No!" Harry protested, clinging to Draco's neck, "No way Sirius; Draco is a part of my life now, a very important part of my life, and you aren't allowed to give him a hard time. Today has been very emotional, and I want to go lie down;" he lowered his voice and looked up at Draco, "Please Dray? Can we go to our rooms?"

"Of course," Draco assured him, dropping a kiss on his temple, "Mother, I'm taking Harry up to bed; we don't want to be disturbed until tomorrow, and Severus and Sirius are not allowed in our rooms unless they can learn to get along."

"Of course Dragon," Narcissa agreed, "Luna should be going to bed as well, so we will go upstairs with you." She leveled a glare on the three grown men in the room, "You will talk and work things out tonight, or I will kick all of you out of my castle; Remus-you make sure they don't kill each other. Come along Luna, I know you're tired, but you did a wonderful job tonight dear."

"The blibbering humdingers were very helpful," Luna replied dreamily, taking Narcissa's hand, "You should leave some cinnamon in here with them; the cinnadoms seem to be especially angry tonight."

"Don't worry," Narcissa smiled down at her, "I'm sure they will be alright." They trailed up the stairs after Draco, who was still carrying an exhausted Harry. "Draco, Harry," she stopped them at the top of the stairs, "Will you tell me what happened?"

"I thought I heard my Mum and Dad calling me," Harry said softly, "and I let go of Draco's hand, but he managed to grab hold again, and followed me as I tried to find them. If it weren't for Dray, I would be stuck in the veil right now. I'm glad I have Sirius back, but…things are just going to get harder, I know it."

"Hush Luv," Draco shushed him, "We may have a rough road ahead of us, but we'll manage, you'll see."

"You'll do better than manage," Narcissa smiled at them, "You boys are strong separately, but together you are nearly unstoppable, and add your friends in…well neither Voldemort or Dumbledore stands a chance against you. Get some sleep boys, and we'll see you at breakfast." She kissed Draco on the cheek and then bent down to kiss Harry's forehead before sweeping a sleepy Luna into her chamber; Draco continued down the hall to their rooms and helped Harry get ready for bed. When they lay down Harry snuggled close to Draco for comfort, and it wasn't long until they both fell asleep in a tangle of limbs.

*************Author's Notes*****************************************Another chapter down, and we have Sirius back! McGonagall is still siding with old Dumbles, but now we have Remus again too. Hope ya'll liked the lemon in there; I tried to do a good job, but let me know what you think. In another few chapters we should have the big confrontation-I just haven't decided if they will fight Voldie or Dumbles first. Well, till next time!**


	22. Chapter 22

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I do not make any money from this story. The characters from Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling. I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its characters.

Notice: This story will contain slash (malexmale) and is rated for later chapters.

An: There is a bit of Het in this chapter, but no explicit details.

"You both need to just stop it!" Remus had finally had enough; as soon as Narcissa and the teens had left Severus and Sirius began shouting at each other and they had even drawn their wands, but Remus was luckily able to disarm both of them. The screaming match had been going on for the better part of twenty minutes, and the werewolf was starting to get a headache. "Look; I know you two don't like each other, but you need to at least try to get along-for Harry."

"Why would Harry care about Snivellus?" Sirius sneered "The slimy git has made Harry's life miserable since day one!"

"And I have already spoken to him about that," Severus said with forced calm, "We have come to an understanding and…really Werewolf, must I tell him my secrets? I don't think it's any of his business."

"You need to tell him because he's Harry's godfather," Remus sighed, "You don't have to go into details, but we need to all be able to work together for Harry-especially after the news you and Narcissa gave me earlier."

"Wait-what's going on?" Sirius demanded, looking back and forth between his friend and his old enemy, "Something big is going on, isn't it? Anything that concerns Harry is my business, so tell me."

"Very well," Severus conceded, "First, the reason Harry and I are trying to build a new relationship is because I found out that he is my nephew. No interruptions!" He glared at Sirius who rolled his eyes but still remained silent, "My mother evidently had three children-I had an older sister and a twin. For reasons known only to him, Dumbledore tricked my mother into giving up my two sisters and he took them to be raised by Muggles, altering everyone's memories; my older sister was Petunia, and my twin was Lily."

"What?" Sirius cried, "I don't believe it! That greasy-haired overgrown bat can't be related to Lily and our Harry! I mean, look at him!" He eyed Severus with disdain, making a gesture that showed he was clearly disgusted with the other man.

"I know it's hard to believe," Remus consoled him, "But think about it Siri; Lily and Severus were always the best at potions-it was obviously something they inherited from Eileen. Why don't we sit down and talk about everything?" Remus conjured three chairs-all of them done in a soft cream-colored fabric and arranged in a circle-and sat down, looking expectantly at the other two until they followed suit.

"I don't know," Sirius said uncertainly as he took the seat to Remus' left and Severus took the other empty chair, "I don't trust Dumbledore, but I can't believe he's that evil!"

"But he didn't view it as evil," Remus said softly, "I was able to view the memory, and Albus thought it was for the Greater Good. Severus really is Harry's uncle, and you know how much family means to our cub, so are you going to make this difficult on him?"

"No," Sirius pouted, "I'll try to play nice; but I still don't like him!"

"Nor I you, Mutt," Severus said drily, and Sirius stuck his tongue out, "Now, I believe you wanted to know what was going on with Harry as well. It's a long story, but the condensed version is Harry summoned the goblin king to steal his cousin-"

"Ha!" Sirius gave a sharp bark of laughter, "I'm surprised he didn't try getting rid of the fat bastard sooner!"

"Indeed," Severus arched a brow, "Well, Draco showed up instead, and Harry was worried about getting in trouble for wishing his cousin away, so he struck a bargain with Draco that the Muggle would be returned unharmed if Harry undertook the challenge of the labyrinth to secure his own freedom. Along the way Harry and Draco realized they had feelings for one another and Harry wound up losing the challenge and agreeing to Draco's proposal –despite Lucius' interference. The following day Harry was summoned to hear your will and those of Lily and James, and he was declared to be an adult, however Dumbledore was not pleased and he attacked Harry; Luna attempted to help and Harry was knocked unconscious and Dumbledore had the Malfoy's arrested for attempting to kill Harry, but I managed to help him get to the courtroom to save them, after which I turned over Peter Pettigrew and had your name cleared. As of now Harry and Draco are betrothed and they are sharing rooms at school as they have already signed the betrothal contract and they are slowly working to undermine Dumbledore's authority."

"I really missed a lot," Sirius mused, "Wow…wait, there's something else, isn't there? You mentioned something about Harry needing all of us to work together, and I can't imaging he really needs our help with his betrothal."

"Right," Severus said, "This may be hard to hear, but please remain calm. I have discovered that Voldemort survived the rebounded killing curse because he intentionally created six horcruxes and that night in Godric's Hollow he unintentionally created a seventh."

"You can't mean-" Sirius paled, "Harry is a horcrux? We have to find a way to get it out of him!"

"I-or rather we-are working on it," Severus said, "I have been doing research here and at Prince Manor, but I still need more information; I have an idea for a potion that would allow us to transfer the horcrux to another object so that it can be destroyed; perhaps you can see if there are any books about them in the Black library?"

"Of course," Sirius agreed, "Are there any other major events going on right now?"

"Severus did inform us that Voldemort has a plan regarding Harry," Remus spoke up, "He wants Severus to take Draco to him by Christmas so that he can use him to get to Harry and he also thinks he can use Draco to get into this realm."

"I, of course, have no intention of handing either of the boys over," Severus said, "However, we must have some measures in place to protect the boys…"

"I have an idea," the men all looked towards the doorway and were startled to see Luna standing there in bright orange robes, and looking much more aware than usual, "Harry and Draco are very strong together; you've seen them professor-they don't even have to say a spell, all they have to do is want something bad enough and they have it. Well, the boys have strengthened their bond earlier today, and what they want most of all is to keep their friends and family safe from harm. Train them for the next couple of months, and when Christmas comes, do as Voldemort requested-only bring both boys to him, maybe a day earlier than he will be expecting, and let Harry and Draco destroy him once and for all."

"We can't put the boys in that much danger," Remus protested, "They may be powerful, but they are still children!"

"It might be worth it," Sirius said thoughtfully, "I don't know Draco well, but Harry has always been powerful, and with the right training-and proper back up-that could work."

"We still have to destroy the horcruxes though," Severus pointed out, "and I doubt we will be able to find them all by Christmas, so this is a moot point."

"Oh, the Blibbering Humdingers helped me with that," Luna said, and they all noticed that the dreamy expression was back on her face as she handed a list to Severus, "They also said that the answer to Harry's problem is in the books Lily left for Narcissa. Good night and don't let the cinnadoms bite!" She gave them all a dreamy smile before leaving the room.

"I think…I think she has it," Severus said, his hand trembling slightly with excitement, although his expression only showed mild curiosity, "This list, it makes sense-it names all the horcruxes and their locations. Here; look:" He turned the list so that Remus and Sirius could read it as well.

Voldemort's Diary-Destroyed

Slytherin's Ring-Destroyed

Slytherin's Locket-Mundungus Fletcher

Hufflepuff's Cup-Lestrange Vault

Ravenclaw's Diadem-Hogwarts, Room of Hidden Things

Nagini-With Voldemort

Harry Potter-With Draco Malfoy

"So now we just have to get the damn things," Severus said, "I don't want to tell anyone about this, other than the boys and Narcissa; they are the only ones who need to know."

"How do we know this is right?" Sirius asked, "It all seems a little too easy and too convenient to me."

"Luna is always right," Severus informed him, "She knows things-not like a Seer, but…it is rather hard to explain, however I don't believe she has ever been wrong. As for being too easy, we still have to get to the horcruxes and then destroy them-they are bound to be protected by powerful enchantments; have you ever tried breaking into Gringotts?"

"He has a point," Remus grinned, "And…as much as I hate to say it, if we can destroy all the horcruxes by Christmas and the boys-and Narcissa-agree, perhaps we should train them so that Voldemort can be defeated by Christmas."

"Getting rid of that foul creature would be the ultimate Christmas present for the wizarding world," Sirius agreed, before yawning, "Wow! It's amazing how tired being dead makes you! I think I could use a cup of tea to stay awake!" He pushed himself out of the chair, only to fall back immediately; it was only at this point that the other men noticed how pale the ex-convict looked.

"Idiot Black," Severus muttered, standing up and leaning over the other man, waving his wand to do a health scan, "Why didn't you tell anyone you were feeling dizzy and light-headed?"

"And hungry," Sirius joked, "Haven't had a proper meal in ages."

"Idiot," Severus muttered again, "You need food and rest, not to be starting arguments you know you'll never win anyway."

"Never lost to you before Snivellus," Sirius glared weakly, "and I don't intend to start now."

"Is he okay Severus?" Remus asked anxiously, fighting the urge to hover as he knew that Severus would not appreciate it, "Did being in that veil do something to him?"

"From what I can tell he is merely suffering from exhaustion, hunger and dehydration," Severus replied, "I have some potions he can take tonight, but tomorrow he will need to eat real food. Help me get him to my rooms so I can give him those potions."

"Don't need help," Sirius protested, pushing Severus out of his way and forcing himself to stand up, swaying alarmingly, "See? I can handle myself."

"Idiot Mutt," Severus sighed, "You'll never make it up the stairs by yourself-either accept some help or I will put you in a full body-bind and levitate you."

"Moony won't let you; right Moony?" He turned puppy-dog eyes on his friend, and was relieved when the sandy-haired man smiled.

"Of course not Padfoot," he said reassuringly, "I'd do it myself." Sirius gasped and adopted a wounded look, which Remus ignored; "Now stop pouting and come on." He put an arm around his glaring friend's waist and nodded at Severus, "I think I can support him if you want to lead the way; I'll let you know if I need help."

"Very well," Severus agreed, "This way then." He led the other two out of the ballroom and up a flight of stairs to the guest wing; "That is your room as long as you stay here Lupin," he nodded to a door on their left, "and this is my room."

Severus's room was surprisingly soothing; the walls were painted a warm grey, the floors were made of dark stone with heating charms on them, the furniture-a large four poster bed, a writing desk, a wardrobe and several bookcases-were made of dark oak, there was a small sitting area with two chairs upholstered in silver fabric, and the bed hangings were also silver, while the comforter on the bed was a deep emerald green, providing the only spot of color in the room.

"Slimy Slytherin," Sirius muttered as he looked around, but Remus and Severus both noticed that he was much paler and his breathing was more labored.

"Yes, yes," Severus said dismissively, transfiguring one of the chairs into a chaise lounge and gesturing for Sirius to sit there, "Now sit while I get you those potions." He watched as Remus helped Sirius make himself comfortable and then disappeared through a small, almost unnoticeable door in between two of the bookcases and soon returned with two potions. "This is a nutrient potion which should hold you over until breakfast and a restorative sleeping draught to make sure that you actually sleep and don't have distressing dreams."

"Aww, Sevvy! I didn't know you cared!" Sirius teased, then yelped as he felt a stinging hex on his cheek, "What was that for? And why did he get his wand back? It's not fair!"

"That was for mocking me," Severus said calmly, "As for getting my wand back, I merely summoned it while the werewolf was occupied with speaking to you. Now, take these potions so that I can have my room back." He handed the two vials to Remus, who spent ten minutes trying to convince Sirius to take the potions, finally resorting to bribery-he had to promise to let Sirius take him shopping for new clothes as soon as they got back to London.

"These things taste horrible," Sirius made a face as he swallowed the second potion, "Why can't you brilliant potions-type-people come up with a way to make them taste better?"

"Because we enjoy seeing people like you suffer," Severus replied, "Now kindly get out of my room so I can go to slee-what do you think you are doing? Wake up Black!" The dog animagus had quickly passed out on the chaise lounge, and Severus was surprised to note how young he looked; the restorative sleeping draught had worked to smooth the wrinkles and frown lines normally visible, making him look almost like a teenager again.

"I can levitate him to my room," Remus offered, "That way if something happens in the night I can come and get you."

"In that case he may as well stay here," Severus said, "I doubt anything will happen while he sleeps, but if something does happen I am better equipped to handle it; I promise the mutt will still be alive in the morning."

"Well, if you're sure," Remus said hesitantly, and Severus nodded, "Okay; I guess I will see you in the morning then; and thank you Severus-not just for helping with Sirius, but also for being willing to put the past aside and work on you relationship with Harry. He's always wanted a family, but the Dursley's never cared for him."

"Yes," Severus frowned, "I want more information on what he endured while in their care; they will be held responsible for their actions, along with Dumbledore for placing him there."

"It would probably be best if you spoke to Harry about it first," Remus said, "I don't have all the details myself; if Harry won't tell you then I would recommend asking Mr. Malfoy-if he doesn't know yet I'm sure he'll find out."

"Indeed," Severus agreed with a small smile, "Very well; we can discuss this later."

"Right; Goodnight Severus," Remus said and left after getting a nod of acknowledgement from the dour potions master.

"Well Black; looks like you've put me in another awkward situation," Severus glared down at the unconscious man, "I am not giving up my bed, however it would not be good for you to sleep there all night." Sighing Severus levitated the other man to the bed and summoned and extra blanket to cover him. "Just make sure you stay on your side Mutt." He obviously received no reply from the sleeping man, yet he still glared at him for another moment before climbing in bed and turning to face away from Sirius; having another person in his bed was an odd feeling and it took Severus some time to relax, but when he finally did it was a peaceful sleep with no interruptions.

Harry opened his eyes to see a dilapidated room, where a familiar snake-faced figure was sitting in a worn-out green armchair in front of a fire. Nagini was wrapped around the base of the chair, and kneeling in front of it was Bellatrix Lestrange, peering up at her master with an adoring and pleading look.

"Please, My Lord; Severus Snape cannot be trusted," she plead, "He was close friends with the treacherous Lucius Malfoy, and he did not attempt to prevent Karkaroff from fleeing; he has to have known about the realm my sister rules but, unlike me, he never revealed the information to you. If I had not been banned long ago, I would gladly give you the keys to the kingdom! Severus is more likely to betray you than to bring my pathetic nephew to you."

"You dare question me, Bella?" Voldemort said in a low, dangerous voice; "Crucio." He kept the curse on for a few minutes, enjoying the dark-haired witch's screams, before removing it. "As it so happens, I agree with you; Severus can no longer be trusted-it has been brought to my attention that he has turned Pettigrew over to the ministry, however I would like for him to think I believe in his loyalty for a while longer. I still want Potter and the young Malfoy by Christmas, however I will need someone else to bring them to me."

"The young Crabbe and Goyle are loyal to the cause My Lord," Bella offered excitedly, "They would be eager to bring one or both of the boys to you."

"Yes," Voldemort nodded, "However they are not bright enough to pull it off; not alone anyway, and I cannot trust the rest of the Slytherin children to be loyal as I do not know how many of them young Malfoy has managed to sway. No, I need someone who will not draw Potter's suspicion, someone who would have access to him both in and out of school."

"What about the Weasley girl?" Bella suggested, "You possessed her once, you must still have a hold on her, and Potter trusts her."

"Good girl," Voldemort said condescendingly, beckoning Bella near and petting her hair, "That is an excellent idea my pet-and I know just how to get to the blood traitor. You, my beauty deserve a reward; what shall it be?"

"Pleasing you is my reward, My Lord," Bella simpered, pressing her face into her lords hand, "Anything you desire of me…" She trailed off with a gasp as Voldemort tightened his grip in her hair, pulling her to her feet and dragging her across the room. "Yes, My Lord," she whimpered as he pressed her face down on the desk, "My desire is to please you, only you."

"And that is why you have not given your husband an heir," Voldemort said coldly, "Perhaps you are hoping to give me an heir, that is how loyal you are to me, isn't it Bella?" He ripped the back of her robes and then pushed his own to the side, entering her in a single, brutal thrust, making her scream at the pain, "I am going to make you scream and bleed."

"Yes!" Bella cried, screaming out as he thrust into her again, holding her by the back of the neck and pushing her face first into the desk.

Harry looked away at this point, unable to watch anyone be raped, no matter how evil they were. Although, could it really be considered rape if she wanted it and was continuing to beg for it, even through her screams? The noises behind him finally stopped and Harry looked after a few minutes to see Voldemort as composed as ever while Bella lay bleeding and naked on the floor, kissing her master's feet.

"Crucio," Harry was startled when Voldemort cast the curse on the woman at his feet. He held the curse for longer this time, only letting up when her screams were reduced to a wordless whimper. Voldemort leaned down and grabbed the witch by her hair forcing him to look at him; "The only reason I would need an heir would be if I were to die, however I have no intention of allowing that to happen; you will go home and tell your husband what happened here today and allow him to punish you for your adulterous ways, whore. You will return every day for a round of Crucio to make sure that you do not conceive, and you will make yourself available to me whenever I desire; I and your husband are the only ones who may touch you unless I give explicit permission otherwise, and he shall punish you after every session with me, understand?"

"Yes My Lord," Bella kissed his feet again, "Thank you My Lord." Voldemort gave a cold smile and pointed his wand again, and Harry jerked upright in bed just as the curse was cast once again.

The brunette was hyperventilating and feeling sick after shat he just saw. He tried to force his heartbeat back to normal, but after a moment he felt the bile rise up in his throat and ran for the bathroom, just barely making it in time.

"Harry?" he heard the concerned voice behind him as he empty the contents of his stomach and then there was a cool hand on his forehead, "Harry Luv, what is it? Are you sick? What happened?" Harry was unable to answer for a few minutes, but finally his stomach was empty and he looked up at the blonde with watery eyes. "Harry-your scar! It's red!"

"H-had a dream; a vision," Harry gasped, "It w-was Voldemort, and h-he was with B-Bellatrix."

"Shhhh, calm down Luv," Draco soothed him, gathering the smaller boy in his arms and carrying him back to bed; he sat down with Harry in his lap and gave the brunette a glass of water before saying softly, "Tell me what happened Luv."

"Voldemort and Bella were talking," Harry said softly, a bit calmer now that he was safely snuggled in Draco's arms, "First he punished her for questioning his judgment about Severus, but then he said he agreed and that he needed to find someone else to get me-and you-to him. Bellatrix suggested Ginny, because of the diary back in first year, and Voldemort rewarded her by…by…oh Merlin Dray! It was awful! H-he raped her, but she wanted it! She begged for it, and screamed, and thanked him for it!" He was shaking terribly now, "Then, when it was done he cast Crucio on her because he said she wanted to give him an heir and he didn't need one because he couldn't die; he ordered her to tell her husband about what she did with Voldemort, and said that her husband should punish her for cheating, and that he-Voldemort-would Crucio her every day to make sure she didn't get pregnant, but that she must make herself available for him anytime and that her husband should always punish her afterwards! It was…it was terrible to watch!" Harry was sobbing into Draco's chest now, and the blonde held him tightly, petting his hair gently until he felt the Gryffindor start to calm down.

"We'll tell Severus and Mother in the morning," Draco said, "but in the meantime you need to get some more sleep; it will make you feel better. Do you need a sleeping draught?"

"N-no," Harry stammered, burying his head against Draco's chest, "Just need you Dray; hold me."

"Of course," Draco replied, maneuvering until they were lying down with Harry wrapped safely in his arms, the brunette's head resting on his shoulder, "I'll always be here when you need me Lion, and I will never let you go. Just relax with me, and close your eyes."

"I love you Draco," Harry whispered.

"I love you to Harry," Draco replied, kissing the top of his head, "And I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe."

It didn't take Harry as long as he'd thought it would to relax, not with Draco whispering reassurances in his ear and the blonde's arms wrapped securely around him, so Harry snuggled into his lover's embrace, soon falling back into a peaceful sleep. Draco remained awake for a while after that thinking of all he had been told. His aunt Bella was willingly Voldemort's plaything, and the Dark Lord was planning to use the youngest Weasley to get to his Harry. Well, that must not be allowed to happen, even if he had to keep the Weaslette and her family away from his fiancé; he had grown to like the red-headed family, but he would not hesitate to keep them away from Harry, even if the brunette hated him for it-Harry's safety would come first, no matter what. In addition, Voldemort no longer trusted Severus, so now he had to get his godfather to stop spying-it was too dangerous.

He frowned as he thought about the horcruxes; he still didn't think that Harry should go looking for them, but perhaps Severus would be able to locate them, along with help from Lupin and Black. Sighing he realized that there were still numerous obstacles in their way, and he still didn't have any idea what to do about Dumbledore; Harry was right in his assessment earlier-things were not going to be getting easier any time soon. As if hearing his thoughts, the brunette mumbled something incoherent in his sleep and snuggled deeper into his embrace, bringing a small smile to Draco's face as he closed his eyes. Yes, they still had a lot to accomplish, but they would do it together; perhaps he could even get Harry to reconsider his view points on world domination…

With that happy thought Draco drifted off to sleep with a smile on his face, looking forward to the future with his lover.

"I still cannot believe Severus interfered like that," McGonagall fumed, "He had no right; Potter and Malfoy were both out after curfew, and Potter was showing me absolutely no respect." It was Saturday afternoon, and she was sitting with Dumbledore as they discussed the situation with Harry Potter.

"I know it's upsetting Minerva, however you did your best," Dumbledore soothed her, "It seems that Severus cannot be trusted any longer, though it saddens me to say so; I believe that Voldemort has finally gotten to him, and between Severus and young Malfoy I fear that Harry has been turned from our side."

"No!" Minerva gasped, "What will we do? The prophesy; we need him to defeat Voldemort!"

"We will just have to make him see the error of his ways," Dumbledore said, "Harry is a confused boy, just looking for love and somehow young Malfoy has convinced Harry that he loves him; I also have reason to believe that Severus is trying to pass himself off as one of Harry's long-lost relatives who only just discovered that they were family. I am sad to say that Lily's sister did not care for Harry as I had thought she would, and with Sirius gone he is grabbing onto the first family that he is offered."

"But he has the Weasley's," McGonagall protested, "They care for him so much that they are willing to give Mr. Malfoy the benefit of the doubt!"

"Yes, but no doubt Harry feels that they are not his true family," Dumbledore explained, "If Severus is pretending to be a blood relation…"

"I see," McGonagall frowned, "Then what will we do? How will we get him to come back to us?"

"I have a plan," the headmaster assured her, "However I will need your help…" As he outlined his plan, McGonagall frowned; it wasn't against school rules, however it did conflict with her morals a bit-but if Dumbledore said it was necessary, then she would do as he asked; anything for the Greater Good.

************************************************************************************************AN: So, we have Siri back, and Sev and Siri reluctantly agreed to a truce, but there's still a lot going on! Plots from all different angles against our boys, and Draco still seems to think Harry's going to agree to take over the world…who thinks our Gryffindor will eventually give in? Hope you enjoyed the chapter, and please review! Also, as most of you know is in the process of reviewing all the stories and removing the ones with adult content-I am working on transferring them over to my yahoo group (see profile for info) and also using the same penname; neither of those sites is as user-friendly when searching for a specific story, so if anyone knows of another site that accepts fanfiction with adult content please let me know!**


	23. Chapter 23

SS~SS~SS~SS~SS~SS

Severus woke up the next morning feeling much warmer than normal, with a reassuring weight across his chest, his left arm trapped beneath something and his right arm pulling it closer. It only took him a few seconds to realize that this wasn't right, and he slowly opened his eyes to see a mop of scraggily black hair in his line of sight; with a quiet sigh he remembered the events of the last night and realized that Sirius must have snuggled up to him sometime after he had fallen asleep. Severus waited for the anger that he normally felt when the dog animagus did something annoying, but to his surprise he realized he only felt slight amusement, and an unfamiliar sense of peace at having his once-enemy so close to him. He closed his eyes and frowned, contemplating these new feelings towards Sirius, before concluding that he must only be feeling this way because it had been too long since he had had the comfort of being this close to another human, now he just had to figure out how to get out of this situation before the mutt woke up.

Unfortunately, this thought came too late as he felt the other man begin to stir. Severus froze as Sirius nuzzled his neck, holding his breath and trying to ignore the stir of arousal; it had definitely been too long if he was reacting like this to the stupid Gryffindor mutt. He forced his breathing back to normal, and could pinpoint the exact moment when the man lying on his chest awoke by the way he froze in unnatural stillness.

"Idiot mutt," he muttered, gently pushing Sirius off him, "Can't obey the simplest instruction to stay on your side of the bed; if I have to deal with you we're going to have to enroll you in obedience training."

"Hey! I couldn't help it!" Sirius sat up and pushed lanky hair out of his grey eyes, "I was sleeping, you git! And I don't remember being told anything after you poisoned me last night!" Severus smirked inwardly before responding; starting an argument was the perfect was to alleviate the potential embarrassment of this situation.

"I didn't poison you Black," he drawled, "If I had you would be dead. By the way, have you ever heard of taking a shower? You positively reek, and now I shall have to burn my sheets, possibly the mattress as well."

"Well excuse me for being dead, Snivellus," Sirius retorted, "They don't exactly have showers in the veil, you prat!"

"Well, now you do have access to a shower," Severus pointed to a door off to the side, "That leads to my bathroom; I'll loan you some robes until you can get your own."

"Never knew you were so generous Sevvy," Sirius teased as he climbed out of the bed, dodging a stinging hex as he ran to the bathroom; he stuck his head out to say, "Oh, and if you have something that's not black, it would be greatly appreciated." He flashed Severus a grin and then disappeared into the bathroom.

"I'll show him not black," Severus muttered, pulling out one of his normal black robes; he charmed it to be a dark grey color instead before casting another spell-there was no apparent change, but Severus was evidently pleased if the smirk on his face was anything to go by. He took the robe to the bathroom and-after fighting with himself for a moment-opened the door and levitated the clothing to the sink, resisting the sudden urge to peak at Sirius in the shower.

"I'm going insane," he mumbled, "Imaging Black naked…all those Crucio's have obviously caused more damage than I thought." He shook his head and sat down at his desk, pulling out a leather-bound notebook to review his notes regarding the horcrux situation as he waited for Sirius to finish his shower.

SB~SB~SB~SB~SB~SB

'I can't believe I woke up in Snape's bed-laying on top of him!' Sirius shivered as he stepped into the shower, 'Not to mention I-' He shook his head to stop the thought from forming-the thought that he had actually enjoyed feeling Snape's arms wrapped around him, because that was preposterous.

"I'm just touch-deprived," he muttered, "Haven't had any human contact in months, and before that I was surrounded by Dementors for thirteen years; come to think of it, the Dementors and the whole being-dead-thing have probably messed with my head, made me a little bit insane. Yeah, that's it; I just have a few mental problems, that's all." Satisfied with his conclusion Sirius focused on washing his hair-it felt like it had been years since he had had a good shower, and Snape's shampoo smelled really good, like strawberries and cream; he wondered why it was in there when Snape obviously didn't use it-he would have smelled it this morning if he did because his sense of smell was slightly heightened in human form as well thanks to his animagus form.

Sighing, Sirius forced the thought from his mind and focused on enjoying his shower, but his thoughts kept going back to the snarky potions master. He had known Severus Snape since first year, when he was just a scrawny little boy with guarded eyes and wearing too-big clothes. Thinking back, he realized that he had no reason for his instant dislike of the boy-except for the fact that James fell in love with Lily at first sight, and since Severus held her attention, James hated the boy, prompting his best friend to hate him as well. Their rivalry was intense from day one, but then everything escalated in third year; he still couldn't say for sure why he sent Severus after Remus-except he remembered seeing Snape in a compromising position with Lucius Malfoy and he remembered a red-hot feeling in his chest. At the time he put it down to disgust and loathing, but now he had a suspicion that the feeling had been something else entirely.

Of course, that was preposterous, he told himself; there was no way he felt anything for Snape, although he would need to make more of an effort to get along with him, for Harry's sake and maybe, after all these years, they could actually put the past aside and become…people who wouldn't kill each other.

Sirius finished his shower and cast a drying charm with his wand (which was lying on the sink with the robes Severus had left for him). He picked up the robes and rolled his eyes; Severus had given him dark grey robes, but at least they weren't black. He quickly got dressed and walked back into the bedroom to see Severus sitting at the desk making notes in a leather-bound book.

"What are you doing?" he inquired.

"Reviewing my notes on horcruxes," Severus replied, "As I mentioned last night, I am trying to create a potion to transfer the soul from one object to another, and I feel that I am close to finding the formula, but there's something missing…"

"Maybe it's in those books Luna mentioned," Sirius suggested, "The ones that she said Lily left to Narcissa; you know, I had actually forgotten that they were friends…"

"Yes, they were very close our first few years at school," Severus smiled softly, "I remember Lily used to convince Narcissa to sneak out of the dorms after curfew, but I never did discover what they were up to…"

"Yeah, they were part of the inspiration behind the Marauder's Map," Sirius laughed, "James was irritated that Lily kept disappearing, and also thought that we should have a way to document all the places we found in school, so we worked for two years to create it…"

"Are you aware that the Weasley twins created another version of your map?" Severus questioned, "They gave the prototype to Dumbledore and he swore them to secrecy, but this map focuses on a person rather than a place; they call it the Marauder's Family Locator Map, and they give you credit for the idea."

"I always knew I'd be an inspiration to younger generations," Sirius said smugly and Severus rolled his eyes, hiding a smile.

"More like a corrupting influence," he drawled, "Feel free to read through my notes if you wish; I am going to take a shower and then we should head downstairs for breakfast-the others are most likely already there."

"Okay," Sirius nodded, settling down to read through Severus' notes as the other man took his shower.

Fifteen minutes later Severus was finished and led the way out of his room; the door to Remus's room was open, and Sirius immediately transformed into his animagus form, running into the room and pouncing on Remus, who had been sitting on the bed reading a book.

"Sirius!" Remus laughed as he tried to push his friend away, "I'm glad you're feeling better, but stop licking me! Severus; a little help please!"

"I don't get involved in dogfights," Severus said drily, although he was highly amused by Sirius' antics. Said animagus looked up and growled at Severus before charging at him; "Levicorpus," Snape said calmly and smirked as Sirius was lifted off the ground, hanging upside down by one paw. After a few moments of struggling he transformed back to his human form and glared at the potions master.

"Let me down Snape!"

"I don't think so," Snape continued to smirk, "Not until you apologize and I'm certain you've learned your lesson."

"What lesson?" Sirius demanded.

"The lesson not to attack an armed wizard straight on," Severus informed him, "and not to attack me at all."

"Fine," Sirius huffed, "Sorry for trying to attack you head on and I won't do it again."

"I don't believe you," Severus said, "However I suppose I should let you down-you do need to eat after all, and I try not to damage my patients immediately after healing them." With a lazy 'Finite Incantum' Sirius fell to the floor amid Remus' laughter; he glared at his friend and stuck his tongue out before sweeping out of the room, only to return a moment late when he realized he had no idea where he was going.

"So…you mentioned food?"

"Follow me," Severus sighed, and led them to the small dining room where Narcissa and Luna were already seated.

"Good morning," Narcissa greeted them, "How are you feeling Sirius?"

"I'm feeling well," Sirius replied as the three men sat down, "Sorry for the way I behaved last night; I know it was rude to argue with Snape like that."

"No harm done," Narcissa replied, "I'm just glad you have called a truce; you have called a truce, right?"

"Of course," Severus replied, "For Harry's sake we have agreed to try and get along. I have been thinking, Black, Lupin-perhaps it is time the three of us were on a first name basis; it may help to make Harry feel more comfortable."

"I agree Severus," Remus smiled, "It would make things easier all around."

"I thought we already were on a first name basis Sevvy," Sirius said innocently, ducking to avoid the hex he knew was coming; unfortunately Severus expected that so he sent a second stinging hex when the ex-convict sat up. "Ow!" Sirius complained, "No fair!"

"Stop behaving like a child Mutt," Severus said before turning to address Narcissa, "The boys aren't up yet?"

"No," she replied, "I was thinking about sending Tillie to check on them; they don't normally sleep quite this late."

"They had a difficult night," Luna informed everyone, "They should be down shortly however."

"How do you know this?" Sirius demanded, but merely received a smile in reply.

"She never explains herself," Remus said, "Which reminds me; Narcissa, Luna said the answer to our problem with the horcruxes should be in one of the books Lily left you-do you have them here?"

"Why yes, I do," Narcissa replied, "I retrieved them the week after school started, although I haven't gone through them yet. I can't imagine Lily having any books on the Dark Arts, but we can look through them after breakfast. Oh, good morning boys!" Everyone looked up to see Draco and a tired-looking Harry enter the room.

"Good morning Mother," Draco leaned down to give her a kiss on the cheek; Harry offered her a small smile as he followed suit before giving Sirius a hug and then sitting down next to his fiancé.

"Are you alright there Pup?" Sirius asked him, and Harry shook his head.

"I'd rather not talk about it until after breakfast," Harry said quietly before glaring at Draco, "Which, by the way, Draco is forcing me to eat."

"You can't skip a meal just because of what you saw," Draco chastised him, "At least eat some toast and an apple or something." Harry sighed but complied and Draco gave him a smile which had him blushing.

"I still don't see how you can be with a slimy Slytherin," Sirius sighed, shaking his head, "but I guess it's not up to me. Oh, wait; I'm your guardian again, so it is up to me! I can make you go back to dating and-"

"No you can't," Severus smirked, "First of all, they already signed the betrothal contract which remains valid even though you are his guardian again, and secondly, Harry signed another contract with Draco at the beginning of this whole ordeal which guarantees that he can't leave my godson."

"Is that true?" Remus demanded, giving the boys a hard look when Harry nodded, "Why would you do such a thing Harry? A betrothal is one thing; you can end a betrothal if you need to, but a contract that won't let you leave?"

"It was part of the labyrinth contract," Harry replied sheepishly, "I admit I might have let myself get conned into signing it, since I never lost to Draco before. But…I don't regret it; I've never been happier than I am with Draco…even if he is a snarky git sometimes. Ow!" He glared at the blonde who was nonchalantly eating his breakfast and acting as if he hadn't just hit the brunette on the back of the head.

"Well, I'm glad you're happy," Sirius sighed, "Although I do wish you had waited until you were older to get betrothed."

"Thanks Siri," Harry smiled, and then burst into giggles as Sirius' robes changed color to bright pink with purple sparkles.

"Hey-what?" Sirius looked confused as the entire table burst into laughter, with the exception of a smirking Severus; Sirius looked down at his robes and then growled at the potions master; "Severus Snape! You'll pay for this, you…you…greasy bat!"

"What did I do?" Severus arched a brow, "You said you did not wish to wear black robes, so I was merely complying with your wishes."

"Well turn them back!" Sirius demanded, glaring at his best friend and his godson, who were laughing harder than anyone else.

"Why?" Luna asked seriously, "I think they look rather nice; you should watch out for snargles though-they're attracted to the color pink as well as anything that sparkles." This caused the table to laugh harder; it was another ten minutes before Narcissa took pity on her cousin and returned his robes to the dark grey that they were before.

When breakfast was over the group headed out into the gardens and arranged themselves on the comfortable chairs and chaise lounges provided; Harry and Draco were sitting together as normal and Sirius somehow wound up sitting with Severus while the other three took individual chairs.

"I guess I might as well get this over with," Harry sighed, allowing Draco to pull him into his lap, "Last night I had a vision-it's the first one since the whole ministry thing, and it was…awful." Harry shuddered, but took a deep breath and proceeded to tell them what he saw.

When he finished describing the dream everyone sat in shocked silence for a moment and Harry hid his face in Draco's neck.

"That's horrible!" Narcissa gasped, "You shouldn't have to see things like that; Severus! I thought you were helping him with Occlumency!"

"I am," Severus told her, "We work on it once a week, and he's also been working on it with Draco, right?"

"Yes," Draco replied, "He's usually able to keep me out of his mind when we practice, and he hasn't had a dream or vision from…_him_ since…"

"Since the ministry," Harry said quietly, "I remember feeling his thoughts a few nights ago, but nothing got through; I don't know why I saw that last night…"

"Well, we shall just have to work on it some more," Severus said, "We will make sure that nothing can get through your mental shields…I'm sorry you had to see something so…vile."

"Voldemort will pay for this," Sirius seethed, "I will personally rip him limb from limb and make him pay for everything he's ever done to us."

"Not if I get to him first," Remus growled, "I am sick of that insane murderer hurting my family."

"We have to destroy the horcruxes first," Severus pointed out, "However, once that's done I will gladly help you destroy the Dark Lord. Which reminds me-we still need to look at those books Narcissa, and then we can formulate a plan to go after the first horcrux."

"You know where one is?" Harry looked up, eyes burning fiercely, "I want to help destroy it."

"No!" Draco protested, "I thought we already agreed you would leave the horcruxes up to the adults? You promised you wouldn't put yourself in danger like that!"

"I said I wouldn't let Dumbledore manipulate me into going," Harry argued, "This is different; I would be with my family, and they would keep me safe!"

"We would definitely do everything to keep you safe," Sirius agreed, "but Draco's right-you don't need to go with us," he raised a hand to forestall Harry's argument; "Once we actually get the horcrux however, I would be willing to let you help us destroy it, as long as Severus says that it's safe."

"It should be safe enough," Severus said, "I have the recipe for a potion to destroy the horcruxes without exposing us to danger, however first I need to get some basilisk venom, and that may take some time."

"What about the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets?" Harry asked, "I mean it's dead, but can't its venom still be harvested? I think I remember Hermione saying basilisk venom can be harvested for up to fifty years after the animal's death."

"That is if it has been properly preserved," Severus informed him, "However, there is a chance we can still get enough venom to make the potion; when we get back to school I need you to tell me how to get in; I want to have everything prepared before we go after the horcruxes."

"You have to speak parseltongue to open it," Harry said, "but I can get you in."

"And I will be coming as well," Draco said, "In addition, I would like to assist you with making the potion. Now, which horcrux did you find, and where is it?"

"We actually have a list of all the horcruxes and their locations," Severus said, passing the slip of paper over to Draco, "This was given to us by Luna after you retired last night."

"Well, that's…" Harry trailed off, unable to finish his thought.

"Convenient," Narcissa finished drily, "It's amazing how Luna always seems to know such things without giving us a proper explanation." She looked over at her niece, but the blonde girl was not paying attention-she was instead doodling on a piece of parchment she had pulled out of her robe pocket.

"It doesn't really matter how she knows," Remus said, "What matters is she was able to give us this information, and greatly improve our chances of defeating Voldemort."

"Right," Sirius agreed, "Also, once you get back to school we're going to start training you boys so that if you do happen to come into contact with Moldy Shorts you will be able to defend yourselves until help comes. Sevvy here knows a lot of nasty hexes that aren't quite illegal, don't you?"

"I swear Mutt; if you call me Sevvy one more time I will use you for potions ingredients," Severus scowled at the unrepentant dog animagus, "Actually, I will use a certain part of you for potions ingredients, a part I'm sure you would surely miss."

"No!" Sirius paled and ran to hide behind Remus, "Moony! He's threatening to neuter me! Stop him!"

"Well stop trying so hard to annoy him," Remus chided, "Really Sirius; you're an adult-now why don't you act like it?" Sirius grumbled a bit and glared at everyone in the room, and Remus changed the subject, "So, I understand you have all broken away from Dumbledore, but I'm not entirely sure why; I know what he did to Severus was terrible, and he's been stealing money from Harry, but wouldn't it be better to work with him, at least until Voldemort has been defeated?"

"Hell no," Harry replied vehemently, "That bastard cast the cruciatus on me Moony! Then, he accused Narcissa and Draco of attacking me and tried to have the Kissed! There is no way in hell I would ever work with that manipulative old bastard; as far as I'm concerned he can just drop dead."

"I agree," Draco said coldly, "And until he does decide to do us all a favor, we shall undermine him at every turn until the wizarding world sees him for the fraud that he really is. Anyone who passes information on to Dumbledore will no longer be welcome in my presence."

"Same here," Harry agreed, "We are being careful with who we trust, and anyone who talks to Dumbledore, who gives him information about anything we discuss, will automatically lose any trust we have in them." He took Draco's hand and gave everyone a hard look, "For some reason I have to be responsible for saving the wizarding world, so I-along with Draco and our other friends-am going to take care of Voldemort and Dumbledore; once that's done we will help to reshape the world to be a better place for everyone."

"Ha! I knew you'd come around," Draco smirked, "Now that you've finally agreed, we can really get started working on our plans for total world domination; Pansy and Hermione will be happy."

"Huh-what? No!" Harry protested, "I never said anything about world domination!"

"Actually, you kinda did Pup," Sirius grinned, "Don't worry though; I'm behind you all the way-I think you'd make a good tyrant."

"I'm not going to be a tyrant!" Harry scowled, "And I don't want to rule the world?"

"And why not?" Draco demanded, "You're going to help me rule my kingdom once we're a bit older, so why not rule the wizarding world while we're at it? It would make things much easier if we control both worlds."

"He's right," Severus said thoughtfully, "Once the Dark Lord and Dumbledore are out of the picture it would be easier to maintain order if you took control of the wizarding world as well."

"Not you too!" Harry groaned, "That would be double the work for us!"

"So we set someone up to take care of the wizarding world for us," Draco said, "A representative who has basic power but will clear big decisions with us."

"I can't believe this," Harry buried his face in his hands and then looked at Luna and Narcissa; "And I suppose you think this is a good idea as well?"

"It makes sense to me," Narcissa smiled, "After all, who better to lead us out of the darkness of ignorance than someone who understands how the Muggle world works as well? I wouldn't want Draco to have absolute control by himself, but with you around to make sure he doesn't go overboard I believe things would work out quite nicely."

"Someone needs to overthrow the Rotfang Conspiracy," Luna shrugged, "and then you can push through a law to protect the crumple horned snorack from extinction."

"So everyone's against me," Harry sighed, "Well, I refuse to even think about taking over the world at this time, so you can just drop it; and no making plans behind my back!"

"You spoil all my fun," Draco pouted, then smiled, "Wait-you said you refuse to think about it right now, which means you would be willing to think about it later! Shh!" He placed a finger over Harry's lips when the brunette tried to protest, "It's okay Harry; I won't rush you-we can talk about this later."

"Gah!" Harry stood up, throwing his hands up in defeat, "I give up! I'm going to finish my homework!" He stormed out of the room, followed moments later by a laughing Draco.

"Harry; wait!" Draco came up behind him, wrapping his arms around Harry's waist, "Come on Lion; don't be like that. You know I'm just joking with you."

"No you're not," Harry retorted, "We both know you're serious about ruling the world-and we also both know you'll probably talk me into it eventually, especially since all my friends seem to agree with you, but I reserve the right to pout and throw a fit in the meantime."

"I suppose I can live with that," Draco kissed the side of his neck, "Now, I happen to know for a fact that you finished all of your work before we left, so what were you really planning on doing upstairs?" Harry turned in his arms and pulled Draco down for a passionate kiss before pushing him away;

"I may have had an idea for something we can do," he backed away, keeping hold of one of Draco's hands, "Why don't we get some privacy so we can discuss it, hmm?"

"Sounds good to me," Draco smiled and the two hurried up to their room, closing and locking the door behind them. Once they were in the bedroom Draco guided the other boy over to the bed and sat down, pulling Harry onto his lap so he could nuzzle his neck. "So, what should we do today Lion? Feel like trying out some of the toys the twins gave us?"

"I-I'm not sure," Harry said uncertainly, blushing slightly, "What did you have in mind?"

"How about a surprise?" Draco suggested, sucking lightly on Harry's collar bone, "Take your clothes off and lie down on the bed, okay Luv?" Harry nodded hesitantly and climbed off Draco's lap, slowly slipping out of his trousers and the blue button up shirt Draco had picked out for him that morning; once he stepped out of his boxers he climbed on the bed and sat back against the headboard, watching as Draco-still fully dressed-rooted through the box of toys given to them by the twins. He came back to Harry holding two items-a black satin blindfold and a slim collar made of green leather.

"What's that?" the brunette asked, and Draco crawled up next to him on the bed, holding out the collar.

"This is a collar showing that you belong to me," Draco replied, "I don't know why the twins came up with it, but I would love to see you wear it; please? You can take it off when we leave the room." Harry stared at it for a moment, his heart beating far too fast, but finally nodded and closed his eyes as Draco placed the collar around his neck, closing it in the back and arranging it so that the dog tag rested in the hollow of Harry's throat. "Beautiful," Draco whispered, kissing his neck, up to his cheeks and then pressing a soft kiss to Harry's lips before pulling away; "Now, I'm going to put the blindfold on, okay?"

"Okay," Harry whispered, remaining still so that Draco could remove his glasses and secure the blindfold, "Wh-what are you planning?"

"You'll see," Draco replied, "Or not, as the case may be. Do you trust me Lion?"

"Yes," Harry replied without hesitation, and received a soft kiss as a reward.

"Good; I promise I won't do anything to hurt you," the Slytherin reassured him, "And if I do anything you aren't comfortable with just say…'Sev' and I'll stop."

"Really?" Harry's lips twitched in a smile, "Sev?"

"Yes," Draco said firmly, "That will be the safeword; according to the book Ginny gave you when playing these types of games you need to have a safe word that you wouldn't normally say in this situation so that I know you really want me to stop."

"Whatever you say Dray," Harry replied with amusement; he reached out in front of him and caught hold of the front of Draco's shirt, pulling him in for another kiss. "So," he whispered when he pulled away, "Now that I'm bound and helpless what do you plan to do with me?"

"Hmm, bound and helpless," Draco murmured, "You're not yet, but I can fix that." Harry felt Draco back away, and then he let out an embarrassing "eep!" sound as his fiancé grabbed his ankles and pulled him until he was lying flat on his back; there was a brush of wandless magic and then a non-verbal spell had his arms stretched out above his head and bound to the headboard. "You look so delectable Luv," Draco purred, leaning down to capture Harry's lips once again and pressing his fully-clothed body against Harry's naked, "Seeing you like this is making me so hard; feel that?" Harry moaned at the feeling of Draco's hardened member being pressed against his thigh, "You're the reason I'm so hard."

"Dray," Harry groaned, "Please-want you!" He bucked his hips and whined when Draco pulled away.

"Turn over Luv," Draco commanded, sitting back on the edge of the bed to watch as Harry obeyed; "Good, now spread your legs." Harry hesitated a moment before spreading his legs slightly, and Draco moved in between them; "Further Harry; like this." He placed his hand on the inside of Harry's thighs and pushed them far apart before forcing Harry up onto his knees, raising the brunette's ass in the air. "Mmmm; you look ravishing." Harry felt the whisper of another non-verbal spell and found that he was unable to move his legs from that position, and then he felt the bed shift as Draco moved away.

"Dray?" He said uncertainly, "Where are-"

"Shhh," Draco soothed him, "Just relax Lion; I'm just getting something else for us to play with."

"Yeah, because that's reassuring," Harry scoffed, squirming a little as he tested his bonds, "I can't believe I agreed to this; I should know better than to try out any of the twins products."

"Don't worry; if any of these turn out to be pranks I will personally assist you in getting revenge on the twin Weasley's," Draco said, and Harry felt the bed dip as the blonde joined him; "I really don't think they would make these as prank products though. Now, do you remember a few weeks ago you didn't want to do your homework and so insulted me?"

"Ummm, no? Ow!" Harry jerked in his bonds when he felt a sharp slap on his ass.

"You called me a know-it-all Slytherin Prat," Draco said drily, "And I told you that you would pay for those insults; well, the time of reckoning is upon you-in other words, it's time for your punishment." Harry swallowed nervously and turned his head towards Draco's voice.

"Wh-what are you going to do?" he asked, trembling as Draco skimmed his hand teasingly across the Gryffindor's buttocks and trailed one finger down his crack to probe at his tight hole.

"Just relax Luv," was the response as the finger moved away only to return a moment later, slickened with some of the lube from the twins. This time there was no teasing, as Draco slowly pushed the finger in, drinking up the encouraging moans coming from his lover. After only a few moments Harry was relaxed enough for Draco to add a second finger and he began scissoring them as he wrapped his free hand around Harry's cock, stroking it lightly.

"Please Draco; more!" Harry whimpered, and gasped when a third finger was added; Draco pumped his fingers in Harry's ass at a steady pace, changing the angle until he found the other boy's prostate and then pressing against it, causing Harry to strain in his bonds and try to thrust back more.

"Do you like that Luv," Draco teased, stroking his lover's cock more firmly, "Do you want to cum now?"

"Yes," Harry hissed, "Please…"Harry whimpered when Draco pulled his fingers out and released the other boy's member, "Draco; why-?"

"Why did I stop?" the blonde's voice was amused, "Punishment, remember Lion? Now, I think you might even enjoy this punishment, at least at first." The bed shifted again and then Harry felt something pressed against his lips before Draco commanded, "Suck." Harry obeyed hesitantly, opening his mouth and allowing Draco to slide the object between his lips; it wasn't Draco's cock as he expected, but rather a phallus-shaped object-Harry blushed as he realized that the object Draco was moving in and out of his mouth was obviously a dildo.

"Yes, Harry," Draco chuckled, "You are sucking on a dildo right now; it's a nice dark green, and you'll want to get it nice and wet, as I'm sure you can guess where it will be going." Harry groaned at the thought of this dildo being pressed into his ass, although he was a little uncertain about only having his saliva as lubricant-wouldn't it hurt? "Very good Lion," Draco praised him, pulling the dildo away and moving back behind the bound boy, "Remember to relax." Harry felt the tip of the dildo press against his tight entrance, and then it was pushing past the tight muscles; there was that familiar burn from yesterday and he couldn't help but whimper even as he acknowledged the fact that the dildo obviously had lubrication other than his saliva for it to enter him so smoothly. In just a few moments the dildo was in as far as it could go and Harry let out a relieved sigh, and then gasped as the object within him began to vibrate against his prostate.

"Oh!" his mouth was perfectly rounded as he wriggled his ass, trying to get more, and then he felt Draco's hand wrap around his cock again, "Yes Draco; please!"

"Oh no," Draco laughed, "I'm not letting you off that easily; the twins gave us another toy that I am looking forward to trying out." He felt something cold wrap around the base of his cock, and then Draco began stroking him firmly while kissing the back of his neck. "Are you getting close Lion?" he nipped his captive's ear, and Harry moaned, thrusting into Draco's hand as much as he could with his bonds.

"Dray," he whimpered, "Need to…can't….please!" Draco laughed when Harry realized that the ring around his cock would prevent him from coming, and released his lover's cock before grasping the vibrator and thrusting it in and out of his tight hole, angling the toy to hit his captive's prostate.

"Having trouble Harry?" Draco teased, "What's wrong Lion?"

"Bastard!" Harry gasped out, pulling at his bonds in earnest, "You…slimy…git…not fair!" He moaned again as Draco pulled the dildo nearly all the way out before quickly thrusting it back in.

"I would watch what I say if I were you," Draco drawled, "I have you bound and helpless, and you won't find release until I decide that you've earned it. Do you want me to let you cum?"

"Please!"

"Please what? Tell me what you want Luv; do you want to feel me buried deep in your ass, thrusting into you until you cum? I need to know what you want."

"I…want you!" Harry writhed in his bonds, "Please Dray! Need you!" Draco's only response was to slowly remove the dildo and toss it to the side before casting a spell to remove his own clothing and the he was lining his leaking cock up with Harry's twitching entrance. He scooped out some lubricant to slick his member, and then began to slowly push into his lover.

"Oh, you're still so tight Harry," he moaned, making small thrusts and going a little deeper each time, "I love the way you feel, so hot and tight around my cock…" With another hard thrust he was completely sheathed inside his lover and Harry cried out at the sensation of being so full. Draco gave Harry a moment to adjust before pulling nearly all the way out of hot, tight cavern and thrusting back in with a snap of his hips, making the other boy gasp. The blonde set a fast, punishing pace, reveling in the cries falling helplessly from Harry's lips as the smaller boy squirmed and pulled at his bonds, begging for release.

"Please please please please!" Harry moaned, meeting Draco's thrusts as best he could; "Draco; so close!" Draco's grip on his hips were sure to leave bruises, but Harry didn't care-couldn't care; he just needed to find release so badly!

"So perfect," Draco groaned, leaning forward and pressing hot kisses to the back of his lover's neck; he could feel himself reaching the edge, so he slid one hand around to grasp the cock ring; "Cum for me Harry; cry out my name and tell me you're mine!" He pulled the cock ring off and felt Harry's innerwalls clench around him as the smaller boy shuddered with the force of his orgasm.

"Oh Merlin; yes!" Harry panted as he came, "Love you Draco; yours-always yours!" The words and the sensation of his lovers muscles contraction around his cock pushed Draco over the edge and he soiled his seed in Harry's tight channel, biting down harshly on Harry's neck and growling; "Mine!"

Draco fell forward and let all of his weight rest on Harry for a moment before pulling back slightly and cancelling the spells that had bound Harry to the bed; he quickly removed the blindfold as well and then pulled out of Harry, turning the emerald-eyed boy to face him as he played with the length of green leather around his lover's neck.

"Well Lion? Did you enjoy it?"

"Oh, yes," Harry sighed with a soft smile as he pressed his lips to Draco's in a chaste kiss, "That was…intense; I don't think I'll be able to move for a week!"

"That's what magic is for," Draco reminded him, brushing a lock of unruly black hair away from Harry's forehead, "Those twins are brilliant; I hope the rest of the toys they gave us are this much fun."

"I could have told you they were brilliant," Harry smirked, "Why do you think I invested in them after fourth year?" He stretched and yawned widely, wincing at the slight ache in his bum.

"Hmm," Draco said, "Fancy a nap before lunch? I cast a locking charm on the door so no one will interrupt us."

"Nap sounds good," Harry mumbled, snuggling into Draco's embrace, "Sleepy." Draco chuckled softly as he pressed a kiss to the top of the Gryffindor's head, and he held his lover tight as they drifted off to sleep.

**AN: Another lemon in here; how did you guys like it? This chapter turned out to be mostly filler with a little comedic relief; poor Harry-Draco just won't give up on the world-domination-thing, lol. There will be more action (the fighting and dangerous sort of action rather than in-the-bed-action) in the next couple of chapters as they start going after the horcruxes and Dumbledore's nefarious scheme is put into action. I'll update ASAP, and, until then, reviews are appreciated! ^_^**


	24. Author's Note

Author's Note: Since is going through and reviewing stories for removal, I have decided to move my stories to ; I have already moved this story, and I will be uploading the rest of them shortly. If my stories wind up getting pulled you can find me under the same pen name "GeminiFaerie" on adult fan fiction. net; regardless of what happens, I hope you all continue to follow my work!


	25. Chapter 24

"Harry and Draco have been gone for a while," Sirius noted as he set down the book he had been looking through, "Do you think someone should go check on them? Harry did seem kinda upset when he left."

"I don't think that would be a good idea," Remus looked up from his own book; the group of adults were still in the sitting room, reading through the books that Lily had left to Narcissa, "I put it out of my mind because we were busy, but when we met up with Harry and Draco yesterday afternoon, I could, well…I could tell that they had been…intimate."

"What do you mean intimate?" Sirius asked in a soft, dangerous voice, "Are you saying that my Harry and the Malfoy brat have-"

"Sirius Black!" Narcissa chided, "How dare you? Harry and Draco are both old enough to make their own decisions in this matter, and they are betrothed; no one has any right to interfere in their relationship, and if you try I will…I'll push you right back into the veil!"

"Cissa!" Sirius whined, "Harry is my godson; he's just a kid! He isn't ready for such a relationship!"

"Calm down Mutt," Severus sighed, "Harry is sixteen and old enough to know his own mind. In addition, he and Draco love each other very much; this isn't just some sort of fling for either of them-they are betrothed to spend the rest of their lives together."

"But-!"

"Just stop it Sirius," Remus interrupted, "Harry is not a child anymore, and he will never forgive you if you try to come between him and Draco; now, why don't you stop trying to avoid helping us research and open your book again." Sirius pouted but did as Remus suggested, although not without glaring at Severus first, certain that it was somehow the potions masters fault; he still had forgotten his strange thoughts that morning, and had managed to convince himself that Severus had slipped something in one of the potions he had taken the night before. Yes, Severus Snape was an untrustworthy snake and he would be keeping a close eye on him to make sure the former Slytherin did not corrupt poor Harry, his innocent godson.

Narcissa and Remus exchanged amused glances over Sirius's head as the ex-convict began reading through the book in his lap, still glaring at Severus, who merely rolled his eyes.

"Here; try this one," Luna's dreamy voice startled the adults-she had been so quiet that they forgot she was there. The blonde handed Sirius a book, "I think this one will help you."

"This is a book on bonding rituals in this realm," Sirius said, confused, "How will this help with getting the horcrux out of Harry?"

"You should read it," Luna replied, "I'll make sure Harry and Draco are down in time for lunch." She was gone, skipping out of the room before anyone had a chance to reply.

"Well, that was strange," Sirius said, "Wonder why she wanted me to read this?" He opened the book and began flipping through the pages, aware of Severus leaning in close to read over his shoulder.

"Stop," Severus commanded, reaching out to prevent Sirius from turning the page, "Perhaps this is why Luna wanted you to read this book;" He pointed at a passage about midway down the page and began to read aloud:

"When a petitioner who calls upon the Goblin King (or Queen) shows signs of compatibility with the King (or Queen), the enchantment of the labyrinth will be activated to help both parties realize their compatibility. In many cases, the petitioner who has the most hope of being happy with the current ruler of the labyrinth (or in some cases the heir to the labyrinth if it is during the summer of their training to take over the kingdom) turns out to be someone the monarch knows from the outside world and has a strong relationship with. Many times the petitioner will call upon the monarch without realizing who it is, but the enchantment of the labyrinth will bring out their true feelings and if the petitioner and the monarch truly belong together they will often become betrothed either during or immediately after the challenge of the labyrinth; any betrothal resulting from the labyrinth challenge will result in a true match and a long-lasting, happy union."

"So, according to this book Harry and Draco were apparently meant for each other," Remus mused, "You know, even when they were rivals, they were always drawn together; they couldn't go more than a few days without having some sort of confrontation…"

"Much like Severus and my dear cousin," Narcissa said impishly, causing Severus to sputter; before he could say anything however, Sirius made a strangled noise in the back of his throat, causing everyone to look at him.

"This book says that Harry can get pregnant once the bonding is complete," Sirius said, "No potion required or anything; the book says that once the boys complete the bond Harry's body will…adapt itself to be able to carry children. What if he's already pregnant? He's only sixteen!"

"Stop overreacting," Severus said calmly, taking the book from Sirius and closing it, "Yes, Harry will be able to carry children in the future, but the bonding will not be complete until they go through the bonding ceremony; until then the only way for Harry to become pregnant would be if he were to take a male pregnancy potion. Perhaps you need a calming draught."

"No, no," Sirius waved the offer away, "I'm fine; don't think I can stand to read anymore right now though." He leaned his head against the back of the couch, closing his eyes as he heard Severus mutter something about stupid, overly-dramatic mutts.

Another hour passed in relative silence when Narcissa made a soft exclamation.

"Severus; I believe I've found it!" She smiled at the potions master, "It seems that a wizard from the Prince family, about 200 years ago, took revenge upon another wizard who attacked his daughter, and he used the death of his enemy to create a horcrux; with the creation of that first horcrux he lost just a little bit of his humanity, causing him to become indifferent to the daughter he had previously doted on. Well, she was not happy about this-evidently she had been completely spoiled growing up and missed the attention- and worked to create a potion to remove her fathers' soul from the horcrux and then used a ritual to place it back within his body; this book doesn't detail the ritual, but it does give instructions for creating the potion."

"Let me see that," Severus held out his hand for the book, and Narcissa gladly handed it over as they all gathered around him; "Yes, this looks like it will definitely work; some of the ingredients are hard to come by and can be rather expensive, but I have a number of them already in my herb garden, and others can be found in the Forbidden Forest-perhaps I shall have the sixth and seventh years go on a scavenger hunt to locate them…once I have all the ingredients, the potion takes two weeks to brew; we will have removed the horcrux from Harry by Halloween."

"Really?" everyone turned to see a grinning Harry standing in the doorway, leaning against a smug-looking Draco; "The horcrux will be gone that soon?"

"Yes, if everything goes according to plan," Severus told him, "We will start gathering the ingredients once we return to school."

"What do you mean by "we"?" Draco demanded, "Surely you don't expect Harry and me to go hunting for potions ingredients."

"I expect all of the sixth and seventh year potions students to help me acquire the ingredients," Severus replied, "It is going to be a project to promote inter-house cooperation; that should please Dumbledore."

"Maybe in the past," Harry said, "but now he seems to feel that house segregation was a good idea after all; what with me being under the evil influence of Slytherin's after all." He rolled his eyes and smiled at Draco, who just smirked in reply. "Anyway, we actually came downstairs because Luna said it was time for lunch; she's already gone to the dining room."

"Oh good;" Sirius grinned, standing up, "I'm rather starved. Hey Pup; did you know that Malfoy here can make you preggers?" Harry, who had been walking out of the room arm-in-arm with Draco, came to a complete stop and turned to face his godfather, his face pale before he let out a shaky laugh.

"Right; good one Siri!" He chuckled, "Only, I'm a boy, remember? I don't have the…the right bits to get pregnant."

"Actually," Draco began, "there is a potion that allows wizards to get pregnant, but unless you've taken it without telling me we have nothing to worry about-although it is something we can discuss in the future."

"Oh," Harry said softly, looking stunned, "So…I can have kids, but I have to take a potion first. Okay, I can deal with that."

"Well, that isn't completely true," Narcissa said, "In our realm once a couple has completed the bonding ceremony the…consort, I suppose is the proper word, will be able to conceive."

"I-am not ready to deal with this right now," Harry shook his head, "There's too much to worry about already, with Voldie and Dumbles."

"I agree," Draco said calmly, wrapping his arm around Harry's waist and leading him from the room, "We can discuss the bonding ceremony and children after we come to an agreement on ruling the world. Ow!"

"I told you I'm not helping you take over the world!" Harry glared at the blond who pouted at him, "Now, can we change the subject please?"

"Sometimes I wonder how the Fates came to decide that those two should be together," Severus remarked quietly as they followed the boys to the dining room, "One of these days they're going to be brought to the ministry for domestic disturbance charges."

"Well, if Malfoy Jr. would just stop antagonizing him there wouldn't be any problems," Sirius told him, "I do have to admit that Harry looks happy though; I haven't even been back for a full day, and he's already happier than I've ever seen him. I wish I could have been there for him over the summer though, to watch their relationship develop."

"I know that Draco has some viewing spheres from Harry's time in the labyrinth," Severus told him, "If you'd like I'll ask him to let you see them; they already let all of their friends watch the events."

"I'd like that," Sirius replied before grinning at Severus, "Huh; who knew getting along with you could actually be fun? As long as you don't turn my clothes pink again." He glared at Severus, who merely smirked as they entered the dining room.

"I don't know," Remus spoke up, "I thought it was funny; if we could have gotten along in school Severus would have been a great addition to the Marauder's."

"Much better than Wormtail," Sirius agreed, "but let's not talk about that traitorous worm. When should we go after the first horcrux?" The conversation turned to more serious topics as the group enjoyed a light lunch; by the time they were done eating they had come up with a tentative plan for going after the horcruxes.

After lunch Draco accompanied Severus to the potions room, while Harry and Sirius went for a walk outside.

"So…you really love him then?" Sirius questioned once they were outside the castle walls.

"Yeah," Harry replied blushing, "I do; sometimes I'm not really sure why I love him, except…he's really smart and funny and he's good at quidditch, and he's really hot. Not to mention, he can be sweet and when he kisses me…"

"Alright, alright!" Sirius laughed, "I get the point; I guess I should start calling him Draco then, since he's basically part of the family. Speaking of which, I can't believe you're related to Snape!"

"Yeah, it came as a shock to me too," Harry laughed, "I never thought we would be able to get along, and it was all so strange that when I woke up the next day I thought it had been a dream. I have to say, I'm really glad it wasn't a dream; I haven't been so happy in…well, ever."

"I'm glad you're happy," Sirius swung an arm around his shoulder, "I just wish you'd had the opportunity to be happy before this."

"You know, I think you and Sev should spend some more time together," Harry said, "I think you might get along-maybe even become friends-if you just get to know one another. I mean, he actually pranked you today! The evil potions master I knew would never prank anyone-he would just poison them."

"Hmm…I'll think about it," Sirius replied, "If it's that important to you. Just don't go trying to set me up with him or anything; just because you're deliriously happy with a Slytherin doesn't mean we all want one."

"I never said anything about setting you guys up," Harry grinned, "What are you thinking about Siri? Oooh! You like Sev, don't you? Ha! I knew it; you and Sev act just like Dray and I used to before we got together!"

"You still act like that now," Sirius replied, "And I do not like him; he's…So, how have things been at school?"

"Good, except for Dumbles," Harry gave him a knowing look but made no comment about the abrupt subject change, "None of my friends seem to be upset about me being with Draco-well, Ron was upset at first, but he's gotten over it now-and I've even made friends with some of the Slytherin's in my year. Of course, that just means there are more people trying to convince me to become a power-hungry tyrant, but I guess that's just the price I have to pay." He shook his head slightly, "So, have you been here before Siri?"

"Yeah; I used to come here when I was younger," Sirius replied, "It's custom for the throne to go to a male relative, so Narcissa's dad was training me in the rules of the labyrinth; when I got sent to Azkaban he had no choice but to pass the crown onto one of his daughters since Regulus was dead by then. I'm just glad he chose Narcissa; Andromeda is nice enough, but I can't see her ruling a kingdom, and Bellatrix was always quite insane-she would have turned the realm over to old Voldie by now."

"She was always crazy?" Harry asked, "I kind of thought something must have happened to make her that way."

"Nope," Sirius shook his head, "As far back as I can remember Bellatrix was the crazy one-she thought it was funny to feed the kitten Cissa found to her own pet snake when she was only eight; if that isn't crazy I don't know what is. She used to hurt herself too; I remember one day when she was thirteen or so I caught her cutting herself-not out of depression or anything, but just because she was fascinated by the pain and the blood." He shivered a little, "It was…very disconcerting. That was the last time I went over to their house, no matter how much Mother yelled at me."

"Wow," Harry said, eyes wide, "That's…I think we need a new subject. So, what are you planning to do now that your name has been cleared? Gonna kick Dumbles out of your house?"

"I haven't really thought about it," Sirius admitted, "I will definitely send a letter to Gringotts and have the Order vacate the house, then maybe I'll work on getting it remodeled. When Molly was trying to clean it up I didn't really help any because I saw no point and I couldn't hire any professionals since the house was under Fidelius."

"So you're new goal in life is to become an interior designer?" Harry teased; "Hey! Stop!" He began protesting as Sirius put him in a headlock and gave him a noogie; "I was just kidding!"

"Insolent brat!" Sirius barked in an uncanny impersonation of Severus, "Like I would do something so…girly!" He finally let Harry go and laughed as his godson tried to fix his hair.

"Draco came up with the new design in the dungeons," Harry said, "he got locked in there for a while because he made Lucius mad and he decided that grey was not a good color to decorate a room in. I dare you to call Draco girly; I'd love to see what he would do to you!"

"Please; like I would take the time out of my day to insult a sixteen year old," Severus scoffed, "I'd rather plot revenge against Snape for the pink robes this morning. Speaking of which, Severus said the twins created a new map based on my Marauder's Map; does it work well?"

"Yeah, it works really great!" Harry enthused, "It's actually a family locator map, which they mostly created so Mrs. Weasley would stop yelling about their joke shop. You can set the map to track your family members, and there's even a spell to bring you to them. The twins opened their own joke shop in Diagon Alley over the summer, and they even have products that the aurors have found useful. I keep meaning to talk to them about Marauder's Enterprises; we can use the money from that to help the twins out, maybe combine the companies…Hey! That's what you can do Siri; you can work with the twins!"

"You know, that's not a bad idea," Sirius mused, "Growing up I never thought that I could actually make a living with jokes and pranks, but I have to admit it would be like a dream come true; merging Marauder's Enterprises with the Weasley company might be a good idea as well."

"Good," Harry beamed, "When we go back tomorrow you should go to Diagon Alley and look for Weasley's Wizarding Wheeze's; I'm sure Fred and George would love to have you." As they talked they had been walking around the gardens and they came to a side entrance to the castle; "I heard you talking to Severus about missing out on seeing Draco and me together; do you want to go to the study and I can let you view the memories?"

"I'd really like that," Sirius smiled, and Harry led him inside. Once he had Sirius set up with the memory sphere, Harry went up to his and Draco's room, only to find Severus and Draco sitting in the chairs over by the bookshelves.

"Hey Dray," he kissed his fiancé on the cheek, "Sev; what are you guys up to?"

"Just talking," Draco said nonchalantly, pulling Harry down into his lap, "We were discussing family and our childhoods, actually." He felt Harry stiffen in his lap and shared a glance with Severus.

"Oh, really?" Harry asked nervously, "Well, I don't want to intrude, and I'm sure I could use a shower, so…"

"I don't think so Lion," Draco tightened his arms around the brunet's waist when Harry tried to get up, "We haven't had much of a chance to talk about it, but I haven't forgotten what I saw when we went to pick up your things from your relative's house; I think now is the perfect time to talk about your childhood."

"Mmm, but I'm tired!" Harry protested, faking a yawn, "I think I should take a nap…"

"Or I could just give you some pepper-up potion," Severus countered, "Harry, Draco and I both care about you, and we want to know what happened with your relatives.

"Fine," Harry glared, "But…it wasn't anything important, not really; my aunt and uncle basically hated everything magical, including me. They neglected me and near-starved me, and my cousin Dudley beat me up, but I was never abused. Whenever something weird would happen they always blamed me, and they never used my name-it was always "Boy" or "Freak" and I slept in the cupboard under the stairs until I got my first Hogwarts letter. Aside from that, they would lock my school stuff away every summer, make me do all the chores and the cooking, and they had locks on the outside of my bedroom door and bars on my windows. Well, until the twins and Ron rescued me the summer after first year; they pulled the bars out of the window, but the door still has locks on the outside. So, that's all they did; see? No big deal."

"It was abuse and child neglect," Severus informed him, "Abuse isn't necessarily physical."

"Well, it doesn't matter because I never have to go back," Harry said, "And I don't want to talk about it anymore. Let me go Dray; I want to go talk to Luna."

"What they did was wrong Harry," Draco said softly, pressing a kiss to his cheek, "Go ahead and talk to Luna; I'll come find you in a bit." He let Harry slip from his arms and watched as the brunet left the room, sharing another look with Severus; they would honor Harry's wishes and not speak to him about this again, but that would not stop them from making sure those Muggles paid for their treatment of Harry.

"Stupid meddling Slytherin's," Harry muttered as he walked away from Draco's room, "Can't just leave well enough alone; the Muggles are stupid but I never have to deal with them again, so it doesn't matter…"

"You know they just care about you," Harry startled and turned to see Remus standing in an open doorway, "Why are you so upset?"

"I just want to forget about what happened," Harry said, "They weren't nice to me, but it's not like they abused me or anything, and I don't have to go back; I just don't see why it matters. It's not like they-or anyone-cared when it was actually happening."

"That's because none of us knew," Remus protested, "Albus told us that you were being well-cared for by your relatives; I was forbidden from visiting you and even so I never could have gotten custody since I am a werewolf."

"Nobody knew you were a werewolf until I was in third year," Harry pointed out, "You would have needed to find someone to look after me during the full moon, but that was just a bullshit excuse Dumbledore gave you. Even the whole blood-protection-thing is dumb; it has never stopped me from getting hurt by Voldie before, and Hermione did some research-in order for it to work my aunt would have actually needed to care about me. Like I said though, it's not important."

"Be that as it may, we still want to know what you went through," Remus said patiently, "Now that we know better, we just want to make sure that your family didn't hurt you; if they did you can bet that your new Slytherin family will make them pay, and Sirius will gladly help them."

"Oh, and you wouldn't?" Harry asked with a small smile.

"Of course not," Remus replied, "After all, someone has to be their alibi." Harry laughed and shook his head.

"Of course," He agreed, "Well, as I told Sev and Dray, they neglected me and didn't feed me much, and they made me do a lot of chores, but that's about it. So, can we move on now? I was going to see what Luna is up to."

"Luna went outside," Remus informed him, "She mentioned something about getting advice from the…blubbering humzings?"

"Blibbering humdingers," Harry corrected, "She claims that they can help you see the future or something; who knows? It could be true; that would explain how she always knows things she shouldn't. So, what were you up to before my ramblings interrupted you?"

"Just reviewing the text we found on removing a horcrux," Remus replied, "but I was more than ready for a break; that type of thing is more up Severus' alley. Did you know that I received some property from your parents?"

"Oh yeah; I heard their will," Harry said, "Have you been out to check the property yet?"

"Yes," Remus smiled, "It's a nice little cottage in the Black Forest in Germany; it's popular in wizarding culture because of William and Jacob Grimm who used their magic to scare Muggles and then they would charge the poor Muggles money to save them from the 'evil forces'."

"Are these the same Grimm brothers who wrote the Muggle Fairytales?" Harry questioned, "I found a book last summer by the Brothers Grimm; the stories were kinda gross."

"Yes, they are the same," Remus replied with a smile, "They wrote down some ideas for their scams and a Muggle happened upon the book; he told the brothers that they could make money by turning them into moral stories. Sirius claims to be descended from one of the Grimm brothers, but he doesn't know which one and he was never able to prove it."

"Well, they were like the original pranksters, right?" Harry asked grinning, "I'm not surprised he wants to be related to them. Did you know that I'm descended from the Peverell's? According to Draco they were some big important wizarding family, and Sev said I might be related to Queen Elizabeth the First. I really should look into getting some books about my family history."

"The Peverell's were very important in wizarding history," Remus nodded, "There were three brothers, and according to legend they outsmarted Death and so he gave them each a reward; the oldest brother received the Elder Wand, the most powerful wand in existence, the middle brother received the Resurrection Stone, which can bring back the dead, and the youngest brother received Death's own invisibility cloak. If you ask Sirius or Draco they should have a copy of 'The Tales of Beedle the Bard"; it tells the story about the Peverell Brothers."

"I'll have to remember to ask them later," Harry agreed, "Do you want to go flying for a bit? Since everyone else is still busy it should be a while before we're missed."

"Sure," Remus smiled, "I'd like to get a look at this kingdom again. We should at least leave a note for someone."

"No problem," Harry shrugged, then called; "Tillie!" When the house elf appeared he told her to inform Draco that he and Remus were going flying out over Amethyst Fields, and then the two headed outside.

Harry and Remus stayed outside until it was dark and then returned to their separate rooms to shower before dinner. Dinner took place on the patio again, and afterwards they all met up in the parlor to discuss Severus and the teens return to Hogwarts the following day.

"Albus has said that we have to be back before tea time, however I still have papers to grade so we shall need to leave after breakfast," Severus said as he took a seat next to Sirius on the couch while the others sat down in their respective chairs-Harry and Draco had a quiet argument which resulted in Harry actually sitting in the chair instead of Draco's lap for once, and the blond sat on the arm of Harry's chair; "And no, Mutt-you can't come with us; the majority of the staff knows what your animagus form looks like, and Dumbledore would never allow you to be there."

"But it's not fair!" Sirius protested, crossing his arms and pouting, "I want to be able to keep an eye on Harry and make sure Dumbledore doesn't cause any problems for the kids; I'm Harry's guardian, and he can't stop me from being there!"

"Be reasonable Sirius," Remus sighed, "You know very well that parents and guardians are only allowed to visit the school on weekends or after classes unless they receive authorization from either the school governors or the headmaster; besides, Harry and Draco are capable of looking after themselves."

"But I want Siri to come with us too," Harry protested, glaring at Draco when the Slytherin decided to use his head for an arm rest, "I've barely been able to spend any time with him since I found out about him in third year, and now Dumbles is keeping us apart again! Why are we letting him interfere in our lives like this?"

"Because at this point he has too much power for you to face him head-on," Narcissa said reasonably, "You need to dis-credit him and take away his supporters first. Of course, he has already offended many pure blood families over the years, and even the families that used to support him have begun to re-think their position after his actions regarding your betrothal."

"I still think we should give an interview to one of the papers about what happened over the summer," Draco said, "If everyone knew that Dumbledore had cursed you then he would lose a lot more support."

"We can't give an interview about that because he managed to convince everyone he was possessed, remember?" Harry reminded his fiancé, "If we tell the press he can press charges against us for…slander, I think Hermione called it."

"You could request a new investigation," Severus suggested, "I would advise you to contact Gringotts if you decide you want Dumbledore to be investigated further. Now, back to the subject at hand-Sirius cannot accompany us because his presence would make Dumbledore anxious to move his plans forwards so that the mutt doesn't interfere. Besides, I thought you were going to work with the twins?" He quirked an eyebrow at Sirius and the dog animagus pouted.

"I am going to work with the twins, but I still want to go to Hogwarts," he said, "Oooh! I know; I can use one of the secret tunnels to sneak in!"

"Yeah!" Harry agreed, looking excited, "You can sneak in through Honeydukes!"

"No, he can't," Severus interrupted, "The headmaster knows of the secret tunnels; besides Mutt, you need to be able to come and go without notice-remember the horcruxes?"

"Of course I remember," Sirius scowled, "I just want to be able to spend time with Harry."

"Well, you will see him over Christmas," Narcissa pointed out, "Everyone is invited to come back here for the holiday. I'm sure you will be able to see him during the weekends as well. Now, has anyone seen Luna? She disappeared after dinner."

"She went to bed," Harry replied, "She said that she stumbled into a hive of snuffleflies while she was talking to the blibbering humdingers earlier, and they made her extremely tired. Also, I think she wanted to write a note to Neville; I think she likes him."

"Too bad," Draco commented, "Blaise told me that he thinks Luna is cute."

"And Ginny thinks Blaise is cute," Harry laughed, "This should be interesting to watch. I'll bet Luna and Neville get together by Christmas, and Ginny will probably have Blaise's attention by the time we have our first Hogsmeade weekend."

"Merlin save me from listening to teenage gossip," Severus rolled his eyes as he stood, "I believe I shall retire to my rooms for the night Narcissa; I shall see you at breakfast. Mutt, Wolf-you can join me for a nightcap if you like."

"I think I'll just go to bed," Remus declined, "I'm feeling a little tired from all the excitement this weekend."

"I'll join you, but only if you have something good to drink," Sirius grinned, "I'll see you in the morning Harry-pup; don't let blondie get you preggers!" He grabbed Severus by the arm ran from the room, laughing loudly as Harry fired a hex at him, which missed.

"Let me go Mutt!" Severus commanded, trying to pull away as Sirius dragged him down the hallway, "I rescind my offer; you are no longer welcome to join me for a drink!"

"Aw, but Sevvy!" Sirius pouted, "I was looking forward to getting a chance to talk to you without all the others there to instigate arguments between us."

"What do you mean 'without the others to instigate'?" Severus demanded as they came to a stop outside his room, "You are the one who always causes problems Mutt, so why don't you just go to your room and-hey! I said _your_ room!" Severus protested as Sirius sauntered into the potions masters bedroom; "Get out of my room Black."

"I just want the drink you promised," Sirius said innocently, "Now, where do you keep the Firewhiskey?" He walked over to Severus' liquor cabinet and began rummaging around, ignoring the other man's glare. "Aha!" Sirius held up a bottle triumphantly, "Now to find some glasses…or we can just drink out of the bottle."

"Give me that," Severus scowled, snatching the bottle out of Sirius' hand and pushing the other man towards the small table under the window, "Sit down and I will get us some glasses."

"Thanks Sevvy!" Sirius grinned, "Ouch! Why do you keep hexing me?"

"Stop calling me Sevvy," Severus said calmly as he poured two tall glasses of Firewhiskey, "No one gets to call me Sevvy-not even Draco, and he is my godson. Now, drink this and get out of my room." He sat down across from Sirius and slid one of the glasses over to him.

"But I thought we were friends," Sirius pouted, picking up his glass and taking a drink, "It's a term of endearment-just like when you call me 'Mutt'; by the way-you keep telling me to get out, but I don't know where my room is."

"Your room is right next to Remus'," Severus replied as Sirius downed his drink, "And 'Mutt' is not a term of endearment-it is a term of annoyance. Hey; what are you doing?" He glared at the former Gryffindor who had picked up the bottle of Firewhiskey.

"I'm pouring another drink," Sirius replied, "I need something to quench my thirst while we talk; Harry seems to think we should get to know each other better."

"I never would have claimed him as family if I'd known how meddlesome he could be," Severus scowled as he finished his own drink and poured another, "Fine, I guess we can talk-since you aren't giving me a choice. You were exhausted last night-how were you feeling today?"

"Fine," Sirius shrugged, "Except for when you guys were forcing me to do research-that gave me a massive headache."

"That is because you have no patience for anything other than pranks," Severus responded, "Actually, I did want to ask you about your time in the veil, since you are the only person known to have been brought back alive."

"Okay," Sirius replied slowly, "What do you want to know? It was cold and grey in the veil, and very misty-everything looked the same."

"Were you aware of the passage of time while you were in there?"

"No," Sirius shook his head, "Time didn't seem to exist, but at the same time I felt like I was in there for an eternity."

"I see," Severus nodded, "And did you encounter anyone else in there, or receive any communications from other spirits?"

"I saw shadowy figures from time to time," Sirius replied frowning, "but I never really got a good look at them. I also saw…I guess they were hallucinations. I saw James and Lily, and they accused me of failing Harry by letting Dumbledore take him to Lily's sister, but they vanished fairly quickly. I saw Harry a lot; sometimes he would be angry and yelling at me, and other times he would be laughing, telling me to follow him and that it was time to go home. Every time I saw one of those apparitions it broke me a little more." He paused for a moment to drink some of his Firewhiskey and then continues; "The last image I saw was the worst; Harry came to me pale and bleeding, accusing me of abandoning him and causing his death, then he started laughing insanely and began taunting me about always failing the ones I love…I finally couldn't stand it anymore and I ran away from the vision…" His voice trailed off and he looked down at the table to hide his red eyes.

"So the veil induces hallucinations to weaken the spirits of those trapped within it," Severus mused, "Hmm…perhaps you should lay off the liquor and take a calming draught instead."

"No," Sirius shook his head, "I'd rather drink this; can we talk about something else though?"

"Very well," Severus agreed, pouring Sirius another drink, "What should we talk about?"

"Well, what's been going on since I was gone?"

"Not much," Severus replied, "Most of what happened involves Harry and Draco, and you already know about all of that. Fudge has been replaced by Rufus Scrimgeour as minister; he seems to be doing a decent job so far. When Dumbledore tried to prevent the boys from sharing a room he intervened and helped Harry and Draco to press charges against the headmaster; his only punishment was to pay a fine, but it is still more than Fudge ever did."

"Good," Sirius said approvingly, "It's about time someone in the ministry has the balls to go against Dumbles. Harry mentioned two of the Weasley boys are teaching Defense; how is that going?"

"It appears to be going well; I have heard no complaints from any of my students," Severus told him, "Bill is teaching them about curses and how to find their counter, while Charlie has introduced them to some of the more dangerous creatures that Hagrid is not allowed to bring in; he has plans to bring in a South American fire demon if he can get it approved by the ministry."

"Now that sounds fun," Sirius grinned, "Why didn't we ever have cool teachers like that? Is he going to make the students face off against the demon?"

"That is the plan," Severus nodded, "He will be pairing the students up and making them do research to come up with a plan containing both offensive and defensive options; the four pairs with the best plans will each face one of the demons and he will be awarding points-the pair with the most points will get some sort of reward. What do you think you are doing?" He narrowed his eyes at Sirius, who had stood up and begun walking towards the bed.

"Going to bed," Sirius replied, flopping down, "Merlin, I am so tired!"

"Go sleep in your own bed Mutt!" Severus ordered, standing up and pointing his wand at the other man, "I swear to Merlin I will hex you if you don't get out of my bed!"

"But your bed is so comfy!" Sirius protested, "And I'm tired; I don't want to go searching for my room. What if I have nightmares? After talking about what I saw in the veil I probably will, and you were the one asking me about what happened, so it would be your fault and-"

"Fine!" Severus interrupted, rubbing his temples as he felt a headache coming on, "Stop your babbling idiot; you can stay-just make sure you stay on your side this time! Are you really so lazy that you can't even change into pajamas?" With a wave of his wand he transfigured Sirius' robes into pajamas and then went into the bathroom to change his own clothes before climbing into bed. "I mean it Mutt; if I wake up to find you on my side again I will turn you into a slug."

"You're so mean," Sirius pouted, "I wouldn't want to sleep near you anyway, you slimy snake, so there!"

"Good night Mutt," Severus said firmly, turning on his side so that he was facing away from Sirius.

"Night Sevvy," Sirius replied happily as he snuggled down into the covers.

"You will pay for that tomorrow," Severus growled, "Insolent Mutt."

**AN: Okay, so this is still a filler chapter; I know what I want to happen next, but the transition is giving me some trouble. I promise the next chapter will have some actual plot in it, if you guys can be patient with me. Thanks once again to everyone who reviewed; I will try to update as soon as I can.**


	26. Chapter 25

The next day Severus and the teens left the Goblin Realm right after breakfast, bidding a hurried goodbye to Narcissa, Remus and Sirius; Remus was going to remain in the realm for a few more days to help Narcissa do some more research in on the horcruxes, and Sirius would be leaving later in the day to meet the twins at their shop.

"You know, I used to really look forward to coming here," Harry remarked as they walked up the lane from Hogsmeade to the school, "Now, I look forward to being able to leave and visit your mum and Si…Remus again." Severus and Luna were ahead of them on the lane; Luna was lecturing Severus about cinnadoms and their effects on witches and wizards.

"I can't imaging enjoying school that much," Draco replied, "well, unless you're someone like Hermione or Theo; for me it was just a place to go to get away from Father and try to have my own life. It didn't work out too well, what with Crabbe and Goyle following me everywhere and reporting back to my father."

"Yes, Thing One and Thing Two***** can be annoying," Harry agreed, "I don't know how you put up with them all this time."

"Thing One and Thing Two?" Draco questioned.

"Oh, um, it's from a Muggle book," Harry replied, flushing slightly, "It's uh-a children's book I remember from when I was younger, called "The Cat in the Hat" written by a guy named Dr. Seuss; he wrote a bunch of children's books, and most of them rhymed. Thing One and Thing Two are two trouble makers who come with the Cat in the Hat and they basically help these kids destroy their house because they are bored while their mother is gone; at the end the cat manages to clean everything up and the mom never finds out."

"Muggles have strange books," Draco shook his head, "So, has Dumbledore said anything to you about quidditch yet?"

"No," Harry shook his head, "With all the problems we've given him I doubt he'll remove the ban Umbridge placed on me; I guess I'll just have to settle for watching you play. On the plus side, at least now you might actually beat Gryffindor. Ow!" Harry pouted when Draco smacked his arm, "What? I was just telling the truth! You know you never beat me to the snitch!"

"As interesting as this conversation is, I feel I should intervene before we have a case of domestic violence," Severus said; he and Luna had come to a stop just outside the gates to the school and were waiting for the boys to join them, "Before we go inside, I wanted to remind you to keep what we learned this weekend quiet-only share the information with those you trust explicitly, and if the two of you can't agree on whether or not to tell someone, then don't tell them. We do not want…certain people to know about what we're doing."

"Of course Uncle Sev," Draco agreed, "We can discuss who to tell before we meet up with our friends; Luna, will you come to our rooms with us?"

"I will accompany you to your rooms Draco," Luna replied, stepping onto Hogwarts grounds, "and I'm certain Harry will join us just as soon as he is able to."

"Umm, I'm going up there with you right now," Harry said, "Unless you know something I don't; okay Luna, what do you know?"

"Don't turn your back on him Harry," Luna said seriously, "No matter what he says he can't be trusted."

"Who are you talking about?" Harry asked as they passed Hagrids' hut and started up the slope to the main doors, "I don't have plans to talk to anybody right now."

"There you are Mr. Potter," the small group looked up to see Professor McGonagall standing further up on the hill, almost glaring down at them, "We have been waiting for your return; I had thought, Severus, that you would have ensured the boys returned earlier so that they would have time to work on their classwork due tomorrow, as I am sure Mr. Potter has not even begun his."

"Actually, Minerva, I made sure that both boys finished their work before we left Friday," Severus replied silkily, "Was there something you needed? I do still have a few papers to grade and I need to make sure everything is prepared for my classes tomorrow."

"The headmaster wishes to speak to Mr. Potter," McGonagall said stiffly, "He said to escort him up as soon as you return, so perhaps someone else could take his belongings for him?"

"I'll take your things up to our room," Draco said; he leaned in to kiss Harry on the cheek and whispered, "Remember-don't trust him. Don't accept anything to eat or drink while you are up there; if you aren't back in our rooms within the hour I will come find you."

"I can take care of myself," Harry scowled, "I think I know by now not to trust him, and your mum charmed our bonding rings, remember? I promise I'll be safe Dray; if you want, you can gather our friends together and we can talk to them when I get back."

"Come along now Mr. Potter," McGonagall interrupted before Draco could respond, "I believe you have kept the headmaster waiting long enough."

"Beware of whiffle hammers!" Luna said earnestly, "They have a very nasty temper Harry, and when they trick the blibbering humdingers into helping them they can be very devious."

"Stop worrying about me," Harry shook his head, "I promise I will be fine, and I'll see you in a bit, yeah?" He gave his friends and uncle a small wave and followed his head of house up to the school.

"You know, I am very disappointed in you Harry," McGonagall said after they were away from the others, "I understand how you became trapped in a relationship with Mr. Malfoy, however I had hoped you would be a good influence on him; instead he has been a poor influence on you, encouraging your disrespect of authority and turning you against Professor Dumbledore."

"Draco has done none of those things," Harry said firmly, "I turned against the headmaster because I found out he was stealing money from my vaults and he had my family spy on me; he has always known how my relatives treated me, yet he did nothing about it, and then he used Crucio on me and tried to get Draco and Narcissa Kissed for it. Since Draco and I have been together neither of us has gotten into any trouble, and I've been getting better grades too since he makes me do my homework. I'm disappointed that you would turn against me so easily Professor; I always thought that you were honorable and someone I could depend on." They came to a stop outside of the stone gargoyle guarding the entrance to the headmasters office and Harry looked up to see McGonagall frowning down at him, but before she could respond the gargoyle jumped out of the way, and they saw the headmaster standing there, smiling at them both.

"Ah, Harry my boy!" Dumbledore greeted him cheerfully, "I was waiting for you; why don't you and Minerva come on up and join me for some tea? I just have a few things I'd like to discuss with you both." Without waiting for a reply he led them up the stairs and into his office, gesturing for them to be seated in front of his desk.

"What did you need from me Headmaster?" Harry asked respectfully once they were all sitting down.

"Lemon Drop?" Dumbledore offered them; McGonagall and Harry both declined, so the headmaster settled down to business, "Now Harry, I am aware that you were banned from the quidditch team last year and-despite your increasingly disrespectful behavior-I have talked to the board of governors and had the ban lifted; I feel that it is unfair to punish the rest of your house for your behavior. I trust you won't allow your new relationship with Mr. Malfoy to affect your game?"

"I never have before," Harry retorted, "Just because Draco and I are engaged doesn't mean I would let him win-and he knows it as well; I'd never want to let my friends down like that."

"Excellent," Dumbledore beamed, "Tryouts will actually be this afternoon-I have promoted Mr. Weasley to be Captain of your team, so I'm sure he can fill you in on the rest. Now, I also wanted to discuss your behavior with Professor McGonagall the morning you went to visit Draco's mother; it was very inappropriate-"

"I did nothing wrong," Harry interrupted, "And I have the memories to prove it; if you try to punish me for it I will tell the board of governors and show them my memories. I am not going to let you manipulate me like you have in the past; I still blame you for what happened to Sirius."

"Mr. Potter!" McGonagall looked scandalized at Harry's attitude towards Dumbledore, "You have no right to speak to the headmaster like that! After everything he has done for you!"

"It's alright Minerva," Dumbledore said, "I understand his anger, and I can just hope that he comes to understand why I took the actions I did. That is neither here nor there however; I will let your behavior slide this once Harry, but you really must start showing the appropriate respect to your elders. Now then, there is one other thing I needed to inform you of-in the Hogwarts school code it states that any engaged students under seventeen who are rooming with their intended must take a preventative potion so that there is no accidental pregnancy."

"I thought I had to take a potion to get pregnant," Harry frowned, "So I shouldn't need one to prevent pregnancy, should I?"

"It is true that most wizards need a potion to get pregnant," McGonagall began, "however if the two wizards involved are very strong magically or have a powerful connection there is the possibility of pregnancy occurring; in this instance it is better to be safe than sorry."

"Okay," Harry sighed, "When do I need to take the potion?"

"Madame Pomfrey will be expecting you after you leave here," Dumbledore informed him, "On your way now my boy, and don't forget to talk to Mr. Weasley about quidditch."

"Yes sir," Harry replied, and quickly left the office; he frowned as he headed for the hospital wing-that meeting left him feeling rather unsettled. He had been expecting an argument with the headmaster and McGonagall, but the meeting had been rather mild; there were a few heated words spoken, however Dumbledore didn't seem to be as upset as he had been the last time Harry saw him. The meddling old man was definitely up to something-but what? How would he try to come between him and Draco next?

Harry's thoughts kept him occupied all the way up to the hospital wing-thanks to Severus' insistence that they leave early it was only about eight-thirty and so most of the students were still in bed, getting in some extra sleep since it was Sunday, which meant that Harry didn't encounter anyone until he walked through the door to see Madame Pomfrey waiting for them.

"Good morning Mr. Potter," she smiled, "I was starting to miss you-you haven't been in to visit me all year, which means you must have finally learned how to stay out of trouble."

"My fiancé does do his best to keep me out of trouble," Harry replied with a grin, "It is kind of nice not to be here because of an injury this time."

"I quite agree," Madame Pomfrey said, "Now, the headmaster said that he gave you all the information on the potion?"

"Yes," Harry nodded, "Except-will I have to take it more than once? And will there be any side effects?"

"You will only have to take it once," Pomfrey assured him, "And there should be no side effects as long as you don't mix it with any other potions for the next twenty-four hours; if you feel that you need even so much as a calming draught come see me first, understood?"

"Yes ma'am," Harry replied promptly, accepting the vial of red potion Madame Pomfrey was holding out for him; he downed it in one gulp, making a face at the nasty aftertaste.

"There we go," Pomfrey smiled, "You are free to leave now; I expect I'll be seeing you again soon, what with quidditch starting again."

"I promise I'll do my best not to get injured this year," Harry laughed, "Thank you Madame Pomfrey." He gave a half-wave and left the hospital wing, hurrying up to his and Draco's rooms. When he entered, however, he was disappointed to find that no one was there; Draco knew he would be coming right back, so why had he left? Harry frowned and decided to take a shower while he waited for his fiancé to return since he hadn't had time to shower before leaving.

About twenty minutes later Harry had finished showering and getting dressed, but there was still no sign of Draco. Starting to feel concerned at the blonde's absence Harry dug the Marauder's Map out of his trunk and activated it; he spent the next ten minutes studying the map, but there was no sign of Draco. He saw that Luna was in the Ravenclaw common room, Ron and Hermione were still in Gryffindor Tower, and his new Slytherin friends were still in the dungeons. Looking again Harry noticed that Severus was missing as well, and he started to get a queasy feeling in his stomach; Draco didn't have the Dark Mark, but what if Severus had been called and the blond went with him? What if he was in trouble right now?

Just as Harry was beginning to work himself into a panic he saw Draco re-appear on Hogwarts grounds down by the gate-he was accompanied by Severus. Feeling relieved Harry set the map aside, but after another half-hour passed without Draco returning he checked the map again and saw that Draco's dot was standing in the seventh floor corridor with Blaise; a moment later both vanished and Harry knew they had gone into the Room of Requirement. When he checked on his other friends they were all still located in their respective common rooms, so Harry decided that he would go see what Draco and Blaise were up to.

Harry put the map back in his trunk and slipped his invisibility cloak on, deciding on a whim to see if he could scare the two Slytherin's. He was one corridor away from the Room of Requirement when he ran into Luna.

"You don't want to go down there Harry," Luna said sadly, "I'm so sorry, but Draco has been influenced by the whifflehammers."

"What does that mean?" Harry asked, confused, "Is Draco in trouble?"

"No," Luna shook her head, "I saw him with Blaise earlier today, and they were…they were really close. They were talking about you and your bonding and-I'm so sorry Harry, I really thought that he was different." The blonde was on the verge of tears, and Harry felt the panic starting to rise again.

"Luna, what is it about Draco?" he demanded, "Just-tell me, please; I can't stand the suspense!"

"Just-please don't be mad at me," Luna pleaded, "Draco and Blaise-are together. Draco has been lying to you this whole time-he only wants you for you fame and also because he knows that Sirius listed you as his heir and that's the only way he'll get the family artifacts that he feels are rightfully his. Draco staged the whole thing in the Labyrinth, and he altered the records from Gringotts-he has been trying to turn you against Dumbledore and your friends so that he can control you completely, and it's all my fault!"

"Wait-Luna; that doesn't make any sense!" Harry protested, "Draco hasn't done anything to turn me against my friends-he's been getting along with Ron and Hermione! The Gringotts records were handed to me by my accountant-a goblin-and so Draco couldn't have altered them; nothing you just told me makes any sense at all! Why would Draco pretend to like me anyway? With that contract I signed he can make me do pretty much anything he wants since I failed to complete the labyrinth."

"He's been manipulating you," Luna insisted, "He has been keeping his relationship with Blaise a secret because it gives him more power over you if you care for him when you bond for the first time-that is, when you lose your virginity. I just heard him tell Blaise that he would be able to stop pretending to care about you; I don't know how to get you out of the contract, but the headmaster might-you need to talk to Professor Dumbledore!"

"No," Harry shook his head, "I need to talk to Severus;" he grabbed Luna's hand and began dragging her towards the dungeons; "Come on Luna!"

"No," Luna protested, trying to pull away, "Harry; we can't see Snape! He'll ruin-I mean, he'll just lie to you! Let me go; you're hurting me Harry!"

"It's okay Luna," Harry said, not releasing her hand, "Severus will clear everything up." He ignored her additional protests until they reached the dungeons and he knocked on the door to the potions master's private quarters.

"I told you I had papers to grade Harry; why are you bothering me?" Severus demanded as he allowed the two students in.

"Sorry Severus," Harry said, "I need your help-I need to know who this is."

"You know me Harry!" Luna protested.

"Indeed," Severus raised an eyebrow, "Have you suddenly forgotten who Miss Lovegood is?"

"No," Harry rolled his eyes, "but this isn't Luna. Ow! Stop her!" Harry shouted as Luna kicked him and broke free; before she could reach the door Severus cast the full body-bind on her.

"Explain," he demanded.

"She came up to me when I went to find Draco and started telling me all kinds of things," Harry began, "She said Draco was using me and that he actually loved Blaise and a bunch of other bullshit, and then she-well, she mentioned something that proved beyond any doubt that she is not really Luna."

"Hmm, well she may be using polyjuice," Severus murmured, "Do you have that…parchment the mutt and wolf invented?"

"In my room," Harry replied, "Is there another way, or do you want me to go get it?"

"Why don't you summon Dobby to fetch it," Severus suggested, and Harry quickly agreed; at Severus's insistence he went into the bedroom to summon the house elf, and within moments he had the map in his hands; before he could activate it however, he heard a shout and then a loud bang. Running back into the main part of Severus' quarters he found the potions master sitting on the ground, and the Luna imposter was gone.

"Sev!" he cried, running to help the man up, "What happened?"

"Someone helped her escape," Severus replied, "There was a bright flash of light, and then I was knocked to the ground; when I could see again the fake Luna was gone. Were you able to see who she was on the map?"

"No," Harry sighed, "I heard you shout just as Dobby returned, so she was gone before I could check the map. Guess this means I have to be even more careful to watch my back. Do we have to tell Draco? You know he'll overreact."

"He needs to know," Severus replied, "What if someone tries it on him?"

"Wait-they might be trying it on him now!" Harry ran back to the bedroom and got the Marauder's map out, activating it and searching the school quickly; "Look!" He showed the map to Severus, and pointed at Blaise's dot in the Slytherin common room, and then pointed to the hallway outside the Room of Requirement, where Draco's dot could be seen next to-

"Blaise is on here twice," Severus said, "You believe the one with Draco is a fake?"

"Yes," Harry nodded, "Only…the map is supposed to see through any disguise, including polyjuice potion-how did they fool the map?"

"Well, we shall have to discover that," Severus replied, "However, first we have to get Draco here and away from the imposter."

"Dobby! Winky!" Harry called and both house elves appeared, "I need you to get Draco and the guy he's with and bring them both here," he commanded, "Make sure whoever Draco is with is not able to get away or cast spells or anything."

"Yes Harry Potter!" the elves agreed, and popped out; a few moments later they returned with an angry Draco and a fighting Blaise-imposter.

"Severus!" Draco yelled, "What is the meaning of this? How dare you send these beasts to bring Blaise and I here?"

"I sent them to get you," Harry corrected, "I was-"

"I have no desire to speak to you," Draco interrupted, scowling, "You have a lot of explaining to do before I would even consider listening to a word you say! After everything we went through, how could you Harry?"

"Calm down Draco," Severus said, placing a comforting hand on Harry's shoulder and directing him to sit on the couch, "We discovered that there is another plot to keep you two apart; someone was impersonating Luna earlier and she told Harry lies about you, but luckily she erred and he discovered she was a fake."

"A likely story!" the Blaise imposter growled, "Don't listen to them Draco; Potter managed to get Snape on his side somehow-we can't trust either of them."

"He's not the real Blaise," Harry began, stopping when Draco glared at him again, "Dray?" He said pleadingly, "Whatever he told you, it isn't true. What did he accuse me of?"

"You have been fooling around with the Weaslette behind my back," Draco replied angrily, "Luna and your other friends have been helping you sneak around with that-that-red-headed whore!"

"Don't you dare call Ginny a whore!" Harry shouted, "I haven't done anything with her; when would I have had the chance? Not to mention I'm in love with you, Dumbass! He isn't even the real Blaise; I can prove it-ask him what we went back to the realm to do this weekend. Well? Ask him!" Harry glared at his fiancé, ignoring Severus' attempts at calming him.

"Fine!" Draco growled, "Blaise; why did Harry and I return to the realm this weekend?"

"To see your mother and make plans for your bonding ceremony," Blaise replied without hesitation, "You wanted to do that one bonding ritual that can only be done on the Autumn Equinox. Really Potter-is that the best you can do? Now, release me Snape! I will take this to Dumbledore!"

"You really aren't Blaise," Draco said in shock, stepping away from the dark-haired imposter, "Who are you?"

"Dammit!" the imposter cursed, "I was told that you went back specifically to do a special ceremony; stupid old fool gave me faulty information…"

"No, he just had incomplete information," Harry replied, "Who are you, and who are you working for?"

"Like I would tell you," the imposter scoffed, "Stupid little half-blood whore; and you, Snape-you despicable traitor!" It appeared that whatever spell or potion the imposter had used was wearing off, for his features changed before their eyes; when the changes were complete a tall man Harry didn't recognize stood before them-but Draco and Severus both knew who he was.

"Parkinson," Severus said, "How in Merlin's name did you get into the school?"

"My master is powerful," Parkinson sneered, "He can do many things you are not aware of fool; let me go or my master-"

"Dobby!" Severus snapped at the house elf, "Go to the ministry and summon the minister; tell him we have discovered a Death Eater in Hogwarts. Winky; you go inform Dumbledore." Both elves agreed and vanished instantly.

"It doesn't matter," Parkison said, "My job here is done anyway-now the Malfoy brat knows the truth about his little half-blood whore, and when he is ready to accept the truth My Lord will be ready to accept his services."

"Boys-why don't you go talk in my room?" Severus suggested, "There is no need for you to listen to this filth, and you have things to straighten out."

"Thanks Sev," Harry smiled softly; Draco just nodded stiffly and led the way into the bedroom. Once inside Harry closed the door and then walked over to sit on the chaise lounge at the foot of the bed; he was surprised and disappointed when Draco sat at the desk rather than beside him.

"So you still believe what that asshole told you," Harry said flatly, "Even though you know he was only trying to start trouble between us."

"I-he made a lot of sense," Draco replied softly, his grey eyes hard as steel, "I forced you into this relationship, gave you no choice really, and everyone knew that you and the Weaslette were destined to be together; it's not so hard to believe that you have been seeing her behind my back."

"You only tricked me into signing the contract," Harry corrected, "I was not forced to accept your proposal-I did it because I had already begun to care for you by then. I would never cheat on you Dray; I'm hurt that you think I would do something like that. And after I defended you to Luna, before I knew she was an imposter."

"Look, I have never really been able to trust anyone," Draco began, but Harry cut him off.

"Oh, and I have?" he demanded, "I was raised by people who hated me, and I have been lied to for most of my life! Maybe the fake Luna was right; maybe you really have been fooling around with Blaise and you're just using me for my fame."

"What?" Draco cried, "I haven't touched Blaise-or anyone but you! How could you think that? And as for your fame-I would never be with you just because you're famous!"

"What, I'm supposed to believe you but you won't believe me?" Harry demanded, "Read my lips Draco-I did not cheat on you! I am happy being with you! If you want me to take veritaserum I will, but I will be extremely pissed at you for not trusting me."

"No, no," Draco, shook his head; he got up and walked over to Harry, sinking down beside him on the chair, "I believe you Harry; he was just very convincing, and when I thought he was telling the truth, it broke my heart. I'm sorry Lion."

"It's okay Dray," Harry replied, "I forgive you; just-I would never cheat on you; if I was unhappy, I would tell you. Someone is obviously trying to come between us and make us doubt one another; we have to stick together, okay?"

"Okay," Draco nodded, smiling as Harry climbed into his lap, "I really am sorry for believing you would do something like that; I love you."

"I love you too," Harry replied, kissing him on the cheek, "Now, let's go help Sev keep an eye on that ass; is he Pansy's dad?"

"Yes," Draco confirmed, standing once Harry slid off his lap, "He is very loyal to the Dar-I mean, Voldie." They heard loud voices on the other side of the door and both boys grimaced; "Sounds like Dumbles and the minister are here; let's go get this interrogation over with."

Draco held out his hand and smiled when Harry took it; both boys took a deep breath in preparation and left the bedroom together, determined to show a strong front to the enemies awaiting them.

The interrogation with Dumbledore and the minister lasted three hours, but finally Lord Parkinson was taken to Azkaban and the boys were able to leave just in time for lunch. During lunch Harry told Draco about being allowed back onto the quidditch team, and that he had to go to the pitch right after lunch; they were sitting at the long table the boys had created the first night back at Hogwarts along with all of their friends-they hadn't had a chance to tell them about the events of that morning, or what had occurred over the weekend, so everyone agreed to meet up in the boys room an hour before supper so that it didn't clash with Gryffindor's quidditch tryouts. Harry, Ron, Seamus, Ginny and Dean all headed down to the pitch together once they had finished eating.

"I told McGonagall she should make you captain," Ron told Harry as they waited for the students interested in trying out to show up, "she refused though; said since you're with Draco it would be a conflict of interest."

"I'm not surprised," Harry rolled his eyes, "When Dumbledore told me I was back on the team he basically told me I had better not let Draco win on purpose; stupid interfering old man…I think you're a good choice for captain though-you have a good head for strategies, so I expect you to lead us to the quidditch cup."

"Sure Mate; no pressure," Ron scowled, and Harry laughed at him, "Hey, do you think Ginny and Dean are together? They've been hanging out a lot recently." Harry followed Ron's gaze to where Ginny, Seamus and Dean were sitting on the grass a few yards away.

"Mmm, no," Harry replied, "I think that Ginny might like someone else, but I'm not sure yet. In fact, this year might be very interesting as far as relationships go; speaking of-how are things between you and Hermione?"

"Me and 'Mione?" Ron's face turned red, "Umm…fine; I mean, we're not really together or anything…why? Do you think she likes me?"

"Everyone knows she likes you," Harry replied, "And everyone knows you like her too; unless you're after Lavender? I've noticed her watching you lately."

"Really?" Ron looked interested, "Lavender's been watching me? Do you really think she likes me?"

"I think if you choose a twit like Lavender Brown over Hermione I'm going to have you admitted to the Janus Thikney Ward at St. Mungos," Ginny said as she joined them, "You are a moron Ron; just ask her to Hogsmeade and get it over with already. Oh, here come the rest of the people wanting to try out." She nodded at a crowd of students heading down the hill and the subject was dropped for the moment as they focused on tryouts; Harry flew around the pitch helping Ron keep an eye on the potential newbies. About an hour into the tryouts Harry landed in the stands next to Luna, who was reading the Quibbler upside down.

"Hello Harry," Luna said, "Tryouts are going well?"

"Yeah," Harry replied, "We just need to pick some beaters, so we should be finished soon. What brings you out here?"

"Oh, I just thought you might be thirsty," Luna smiled, handing him a goblet filled with some sort of burgundy-colored beverage, "I brought you pomegranate juice to keep the cinnadoms away-they can be dangerous when you're flying."

"Oh, er, thanks," Harry said uncertainly, "I-cheers?" He took a tentative sip, and discovered that the juice was very sweet; "This is really good!" He quickly downed the rest of the juice and handed the empty goblet back to Luna. "Thanks Luna; I'd better get back up there now-see you later!" He mounted his broom and immediately went back to work watching the tryouts.

It was about twenty minutes later that Harry first realized something was wrong-according to Luna, cinnadoms cause anger and the non-existent creatures did not fly, so they should not affect his flying; this meant that the girl who gave him the juice was not Luna. Harry groaned as he realized that he had just accepted a drink from someone he didn't know-Draco would kick his ass for being so careless, especially when he knew the Luna imposter was still running around. Then again, perhaps Draco wouldn't get the chance, Harry thought as he began to feel light-headed; his vision blurred and he felt his grip loosen on his broom handle.

"Harry!" He heard Ron's voice from far away, "What the hell are you doing?" Harry tried to respond, but he couldn't speak; he felt his broom dip and knew he was racing towards the ground, and then-there was a sudden tugging in his navel as the portkey spell Narcissa had woven into his bonding ring activated, and everything went dark.

**AN: And the plot thickens…So, please don't hate me for the cliffhanger-I will get the next chapter up as soon as I can, but I just need a bit of time to make sure it comes out right. Any ideas on who the fake Luna is? Thank you to everyone who reviewed!**


	27. Chapter 26

Warning: This chapter contains BDSM/Violence.

"Ah Severus my boy," Dumbledore smiled sadly as Severus entered his office, "I'm sure you've heard about what happened to Harry by now?" The aged headmaster sat at his desk, his normally sparkling eyes dim.

"Draco told me that he vanished in front of the entire Gryffindor quidditch team," Severus confirmed, hiding his concern for his nephew behind a sneer, "I suppose you want me to help in locating him?"

"Yes," Dumbledore said, "I am afraid that it may have been a plot by Voldemort; one of my contacts in the order has informed me of a pack of werewolf's that have settled down in Britain, where they have taken over an abandoned prison and I have reason to believe that Harry may be being held prisoner there, as Fenrir Greyback has been seen on the outskirts of Hogsmeade. I want you to take Remus and try to infiltrate the pack; we cannot allow Voldemort to get to him nor can we allow Greyback to turn him."

"I agree Headmaster," Severus said, paling at the thought of Harry being turned into a werewolf, "I shall go at once. You will alert us via patronus if you locate him first?"

"Of course," Dumbledore bowed his head, "I have already instructed the rest of the teachers to start searching the school, along with a help from the Prefects and the Head Boy and Girl. You can use my floo to go where you need." Severus nodded and stepped up to the fireplace, throwing in a handful of floo powder and going to Snape Manor.

Once Severus was gone, Dumbledore scowled at his office; where was that blasted boy? He had once again tried to find Harry on the locator map, but all it told him was that Harry was in a secure location. Albus frowned; how did Harry faint? The potion was simply supposed to make Harry susceptible to his suggestions; he should not have fainted. Well, no matter; Albus shrugged-he would go ahead with his plan, with a few minor changes. Albus got up and walked over to one of his many cabinets and pulled out a vial full of a silver liquid and a single black hair. He stopped briefly to stroke Fawkes feather's, not noticing the way the phoenix watched his every move. At that moment, there was a knock on the door, and Albus smiled; finally!

"Come in," he called, and then gestured for Luna to sit in the chair across from his desk, "Have a seat; you did an excellent job earlier, however, do you have any idea why Harry fainted?" Albus cast a strong locking charm on the door, one that would only be broken by Harry's return to the school.

"No sir; I gave him the potion and then left as you instructed. Will this still work since he's missing?"

"Yes, not to worry," Dumbledore said reassuringly, "I have a potion that will allow us to contact Harry, and we shall continue as previously planned. Just remember; you must be kind and caring, and convince him that Malfoy Jr. is mistreating him. Now, we just need to wait for the potion to wear off…ah yes; now we can proceeded. Are you ready?" Luna's form changed into that of a blond-headed boy with a superior expression on his face.

"Yes sir."

"While everyone else is searching for Harry, we will be breaking his connection to the Malfoy brat," Albus continued, dropping a single black hair into the potion and then separating it into two glasses, "Bottoms up my boy, and good luck!" Albus and his student accomplice downed their potions and then slumped over the desk, unconscious; Fawkes saw his chance and vanished in a flash of flames.

"What do you mean he's missing?!" Draco demanded, "What happened?" After Harry disappeared, Ron and Ginny had immediately run to find Draco, and they told him of his missing fiancé.

"I told you I don't know exactly what happened," Ron huffed, "We were practicing and Harry saw Luna sitting in the stands so he went to talk to her for a minute; he re-joined practice and everything seemed to be going fine, and then he suddenly started slipping from his broom; I tried to catch him, but he vanished before I got anywhere near him. We need his map; maybe he's still somewhere at Hogwarts…"

"Accio Marauder's Map," Draco summoned the map and it came flying to him; he tapped it with his wand and said the password; "I solemnly swear I am up to no good." They all waited impatiently as the school grounds appeared on the tattered old parchment, but after ten minutes they had to admit that Harry was nowhere on Hogwarts grounds.

"We need to organize a search party," Ginny said quickly, not giving Ron or Draco a chance to panic, "Ron-go up to the tower and tell Hermione what happened, and meet us outside the Room of Requirement with everyone who is willing to help. Draco-you go get your friends in Slytherin, and I'll go find the real Luna to see if anyone from Ravenclaw will help us."

"Yes," Draco nodded, "I will stop by Sev's office and let him know what's going on, and have him contact Mother." The three quickly separated, and Draco hurried down to the dungeons. He was just passing Severus' rooms, when he was sighted by Professor McGonagall.

"Mister Malfoy, what brings you down here?"

"I was looking for Professor Snape to see what he knows about my missing fiancé," Draco replied in his usual condescending voice, then; "Professor? Do you know what happened? I know you don't like me, but Harry…I need to find him. I can't let anything bad happen to him." Even though he didn't really trust Harry's head of house, Draco made a gamble and dropped his Malfoy mask, allowing the stern professor to see his genuine worry and concern for the missing boy. McGonagall was silent for a moment as she observed him with sharp eyes before her expression softened.

"I'm sorry Mister Malfoy," She said gently, "All I know is Mister Potter disappeared during quidditch practice this afternoon; the headmaster has all of the teachers organizing a search, and he has sent Severus to check a site off-campus with the help of Remus Lupin. If I hear anything I will let you know."

"Thank you Professor," Draco said, "I think I'll just go let my friends know what's going on, and send Mother an owl." McGonagall just nodded, and Draco gave her a small smile before continuing on his way.

When he entered the Slytherin common room, he saw that Pansy, Blaise and Theo were all sitting by the fire, talking quietly.

"Hey guys," Draco said, and Pansy immediately jumped up to give him a hug.

"Is it true Drake? Is Harry really missing?"

"Yeah," Draco replied, "the teachers are searching for him, but we need to go up to the Room of Requirement to meet up with the Gryffindor's so that we can plan our own search; with Dumbledore in charge I just don't trust them to put a lot of effort into finding him."

"Good point," Blaise agreed.

"I want to help," the group was startled by the offer, and looked up to see one of Pansy's dorm mates, Daphne Greengrass and her younger sister Astoria, "Ever since you got together with Potter things have been better for the Slytherin's; the school doesn't treat us like we're all Death Eater-wanna be's anymore, and Astoria and I want to help you."

"Okay," Draco nodded, "Come on; I don't want to waste any more time." Draco led the group of Slytherin's up to the Room of Requirement where they found the other students sitting around a large table in the middle of the room. The students who volunteered to help were (from Gryffindor) Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Seamus, Dean, Neville, Lavender, Parvati and the Creevey brother's, Luna and Padma from Ravenclaw and then Draco and the other Slytherin's who had accompanied him.

"Good, we're all here," Hermione said once the door had closed behind the Slytherin's, "First, I am going to cast a spell to make sure everyone is really who they say they are." Hermione waved her wand and cast a nonverbal spell; each student was briefly surrounded by a pale blue light which flashed once before fading, and Hermione nodded in satisfaction, "If anyone had been an imposter the light around them would have glowed red. Now, we need to come up with a plan to locate Harry. Draco; have you talked to Severus or contacted your mother?"

"No," Draco shook his head, "I ran into McGonagall and she said that Sev has been sent to help Lupin look for Harry somewhere off the school grounds, so I know he will inform Mother about what happened. We should split into groups and each group can search a specific area; we just need a way to communicate."

"The patronus charm," Hermione replied promptly, "Raise your hand if you know how to cast a patronus to send a message." Neville, Padma, Parvati, Theo, Ginny and Hermione herself were the only ones to raise their hands. "Alright; we'll separate into six groups, and each group has to have one person who can cast a patronus."

"I'll take Luna and Neville," Draco said, "Hermione, why don't you take Ron and…Finnegan? Pansy, Thomas and Parvati can search together, Blaise, Ginny and Brown, Theo and the Greengrass sisters, and Padma and the Creevey brothers. How should we split this up?"

"Four groups search inside," Hermione said, "each group can take one quadrant of the castle; fan out starting from the library. We really need maps that will show where we have already searched so that we don't keep retracing our steps…" As soon as she finished speaking, six maps appeared on the table, each outlining a different area of the school. "Oh; excellent," Hermione smiled, picking up one of the maps and unrolling it, "Here Pansy-this one has your name on it." Each of the maps had the name of a student, and Hermione handed them out; four of them were for the school itself, while two others were maps of the grounds.

"We'll go get started then," Pansy said after she examined the map, "We should arrange to meet up at certain intervals to compare notes; I suggest we meet back here in three hours."

"Good idea," Hermione nodded, "Does anybody have any questions before we get started?"

"What do we do if there are Death Eater's with Harry?" Colin asked, "Should we attack or-"

"No!" Hermione yelled, startling the boy, "If you find Death Eater's with Harry, back away to a safe distance and send a patronus to myself or Draco and we will contact the other groups. No one is to risk themselves!" Everyone nodded and the groups began making their way out of the room until only Draco's group and Hermione's group was left.

"We'll help search the grounds," Draco began, "however I expect we will not remain on Hogwarts property."

"I rather figured you would say that," Hermione replied, "and I expect that's why you have the area that includes the Whomping Willow; there's a secret passage under the tree that leads into the Shrieking Shack. If you look, you'll notice that there are instructions on how to access the secret passage. Just send me a message before you leave Hogwarts, okay?"

"Of course," Draco agreed, "Hermione-we have to find him! Wait-Luna! You were at the practice! Did you see anything strange?"

"I was in my room talking to the blibbering humdingers all day," Luna frowned, "I did not watch Harry practice because I knew the snifflepods would be out today."

"It was that imposter again!" Draco growled, "I should have known! Weasley-think; did you see the fake Luna give Harry something to eat or drink?" Ron frowned in concentration for a moment before shaking his head.

"I don't remember seeing him eat or drink anything," Ron said, "but I was focused on the practice; why didn't Harry tell me that there was a fake Luna running around? I would have warned him to be careful!"

"Well, you can yell at him when we get him back safe," Seamus said, "I'm sure we'll all have a few words for our savior."

"Oh, you can bet I'll have some words for him," Draco agreed, "Just as soon as I find him. We'll see you in a few hours; come on Neville, Luna." Draco swept out of the room with Luna and Neville following close behind and they quickly made their way out onto the school grounds to begin their search for Harry.

********Meanwhile…

Severus stepped out of the floo into his study and immediately went over to the far wall; he pressed his palm against the wood panel and it vanished, revealing an ornate mirror with a silver frame decorated with black opals, lapis lazuli and amethyst. With a whispered word he activated the mirror, and was greeted by a goblin.

"Master Severus; how can I help you?"

"I need to speak to Queen Narcissa," Severus replied, "It is extremely urgent and concerns her future son-in-law."

"Right away sir!" the goblin vanished from view, only to be replaced by Narcissa a moment later, an anxious Remus looking over her shoulder.

"Severus; what happened?" Narcissa demanded, "Is Harry alright?"

"He's missing," Severus replied bluntly, "He was at quidditch practice and vanished, along with his broom. No one knows where he is, but Dumbledore thinks it was a plot by Voldemort; he said that Greyback has been spotted near Hogsmeade and he has heard rumors of a pack settling down near an old Muggle prison."

"Are you sure Dumbledore wasn't behind this?" Remus questioned.

"No," Severus said, "However we can't risk not looking into it; he wishes for you and me to infiltrate the pack. Narcissa-while we do this perhaps you should go to Hogwarts and make sure that Dumbledore is doing everything in his power to locate Harry; you should probably alert Sirius as well; I know we wanted to keep his return a secret for a while longer, however he would never forgive us if we kept this from him."

"I agree," Narcissa nodded, "Give us just a moment and Remus and I will come through." The mirror went black and Severus closed the secret panel; while he waited for Narcissa and Remus, he walked over to a locked cabinet and pulled down numerous vials which he shrank and put in his pocket, after protecting them with unbreakable charms. A few moments later, Narcissa and Remus stepped out of the portal, both looking anxious although Narcissa hid it better.

"I'm off to the twins shop first," Narcissa said, "and then Sirius and I will most likely head to the school. Do you need me to do anything else first Severus?"

"No," the potions master shook his head, "Go confront Dumbledore and comfort your son; I did not have a chance to speak to him, however I am sure he is extremely worried if he has heard about what happened." Narcissa nodded, bid the men farewell, and apparated to Diagon Alley to find Sirius.

"Where are we going?" Remus asked, and Severus showed him the map; "Severus, I'm not sure you should come with me-it's only two days until the full moon, and wolfsbane potion is generally forbidden in packs like this."

"I know that," Severus sneered, "However I have brought my own protections, as well as an emergency port-key in case things go terribly wrong. Now, Dumbledore provided me with some apparition coordinates; I will go first and send you a patronus if it is safe for you to follow. If you don't hear from me within five minutes locate Narcissa and the mutt and tell them that it was a trap." Severus pressed the scrap of paper containing the coordinates into Remus' hand and then disapparated before the werewolf could protest.

Severus landed in a forest, just inside the tree line where he could observe several figures patrolling an abandoned building. After watching for a few minutes, Severus sent his patronus to let Remus know it was safe, and the other man appeared beside him a few moments later.

"Definitely werewolves," Remus murmured, "I don't see Greyback though…of course, he might be inside…"

"Well, what do you propose we do?" Severus asked, "Do we try to blend in?"

"No," Remus shook his head, "They'll know I'm not pack because of my scent. Our only chance is for us to just head straight in through the front door; I'll say that I have been suppressing my wolf and that I want to learn to embrace it, and you can say that you were sent by Voldemort to check on the progress."

"Very well," Severus stepped out of the tree line into the afternoon sunlight, "Let's get this over with then."

Remus quickly took the lead, and Severus followed him through the camp. The duo received a few glares and smirks, but no one tried to stop them or even speak to them, so they continued walking, right through the front door. Once inside they saw that there were more werewolves lounging around, and Severus began to get nervous; up close he could see the wildness in their eyes from the nearness of the full moon, and it reminded him of the prank Black had pulled on him back in third year…

"Well, what do we have here?" Severus was jerked out of his thoughts by the low, growling voice, and he looked up to see Fenrir Greyback stepping out of the shadows, "If it isn't my own pup, Remus Lupin; finally decided to embrace your nature, have you?"

"Actually, I have," Remus said softly, "I thought that I could deny my instincts and live a normal life, but I have recently begun to accept that that will never be possible; wizards will always look down on me, and treat me as a second-class citizen; no, not even as a citizen-as a monster. So, I want to learn how to embrace my wolf and use the strength that you gave me."

"And him?" Greyback nodded at Severus, "Why is Snape here? The Dark Lord has put it about that his pet potions master is a traitor; did you bring him to turn in and gain favor with Our Lord?"

"Don't be ridiculous," Severus sneered, "before accompanying Lupin to see you I stopped by to visit the Dark Lord and I have proven my loyalty to his satisfaction; he sent me to see how things are progressing here and I am to report back to him tomorrow." Greyback narrowed his eyes at Severus, but he met the gaze levelly, and the werewolf eventually nodded before turning away.

"Okay," Greyback said, "I'll take you to where we're keeping him; wouldn't want the Dark Lord to get too worried about his prize." He barked out orders to two other werewolves' nearby, and they fell in behind Severus and Lupin as Greyback led them deeper into the prison. "Didn't expect him to be so easy to get," Greyback commented, "There was no fight at all; I wish there had been though-you know I love a good fight. And all those tasty children that I was forbidden from biting…" he signed in disappointment, "The Dark Lord has promised me as many Mudblood and Muggle children as I want once he wins though." They passed through a darkened corridor and down a stone staircase to a metal door which had four werewolves guarding it. "He's in here." Greyback motioned for the door to be opened, and Remus and Severus had to hold back their gasps of surprise at what they saw.

"So you really caught the brat," Severus was the first to recover as he studied the captive boy; Harry was chained to the wall, his wrists and ankles were bleeding from struggling against the manacles, and his face was a mess with a black eye, a busted lip, and a bloody nose. There were probably more injuries, but his face was covered in blood which made it hard to see exactly what was wrong with him. "Well, at this rate he will die long before the Dark Lord can have the pleasure of killing him," Severus commented, "I should heal any life-threatening injuries, although I am loathe wasting my potions on the likes of him."

"Severus…Remus…"they heard the rasping whisper, and it was all Severus could do to keep Remus from leaping forwards to attack.

"Go ahead and heal him," Greyback shrugged, before giving an evil grin, "Make him good as new so that we can start over; that would be fun."

"I'm sure," Severus said dryly, "Lupin-you will assist me in administering the potions." Severus waited as the cell door was opened, and then he entered with Remus close behind; as soon as they were inside the door slammed closed.

"Dammit!" Remus snarled, "We're trapped!"

"Never mind that," Severus said, rushing towards his injured nephew, "We have to make sure Harry is alright. Harry; Harry! Can you hear me?" Severus reached out with a gentle hand to touch Harry's shoulder, and then cursed when the image vanished and his worst fears were confirmed-this had been nothing but a trap.

Darkness. Silence. Harry was surrounded by darkness and silence. And pain; couldn't forget the pain. His entire body ached, and it felt like his head was going to explode as he felt pressure on his scar. It must be Voldemort, he realized; the evil bastard was trying to get into his mind again, but his Occlumency lessons were obviously paying off. Thank Merlin for Draco! Draco…where was Draco? Where was he, Harry? And what happened…

"Harry," a soft voice disturbed the silence, "Harry, Luv, wake up. Come on, please wake up! Don't do this to me Baby." Harry frowned and struggled to get out of the darkness; Draco was calling him, his Draco needed him. He tried to open his eyes and saw a brief flash of light that made his head hurt even worse. "That's it!" the soft voice encouraged him, "Come on, come back to me; I want to see your beautiful eyes." Harry forced his eyes open again, squinting slightly as a blond head came into view and a gentle hand stroked his cheek.

"D-Draco?" he questioned, and the hand faltered for a moment, before stroking his hair; "Glasses…"

"Of course Baby," the voice was strained, as if the speaker was holding back tears; why was Draco crying? A few seconds later Harry felt his glasses being placed gently on his face so that he could finally see his visitor clearly-and it wasn't Draco. "Wh-what are you doing here? Where's Draco? What's going on?"

"Shhh," the other boy said, "Calm down or you'll hurt yourself and Madam Pomfrey will not be happy; it took her a long time to fix you up after your last attack."

"Attack?" Harry frowned, "What attack? The last thing I remember is falling off my broom during quidditch practice; no one attacked me. And what are you doing here? I want Draco; stop touching me Smith!" Zacharias Smith pulled his hand away as if he had been shocked and Harry was surprised to see the other boy's eyes well up with tears.

"Ah, it appears his memory has been affected again," Harry glared as he heard the headmaster's voice, "Harry, you didn't get hurt during practice; Draco did this to you again."

"Draco? Again?" Harry shook his head in confusion, "No; you're lying. You've been trying to keep us apart and this is just another trick of yours; I don't know what Smith has to gain by playing along though."

"I'm not playing along," Smith said, sounding heartbroken, "Harry-I love you! Don't you remember? We were together before Draco interfered. He changed your memories to make you think you love, him but-"

"What is going on here?" Harry smiled at the cold voice as Draco came into view, glaring at the scene before him, "Smith-I thought I told you to stay away from my fiancé; what are you doing touching him?"

"You have no right to keep us a part!" Zacharias yelled as he leapt to his feet, "I love Harry, and he loves me; just let him go already! Why are you doing this!"

"What is he talking about Draco?" Harry demanded, "I don't understand what's going on!"

"Don't worry Pet," Draco said soothingly as he stepped near the bed and laid a hand on Harry's shoulder, "I'll take care of everything; I knew I shouldn't have left you in the infirmary. Come on; let's go back to our room."

"I must protest Mister Malfoy," Dumbledore said, "Young Harry was seriously injured when…he had his quidditch accident, and he needs to remain here to heal; you cannot remove him without permission from Madam Pomfrey, and she said he needs to stay for another day or two."

"I don't want to stay!" Harry protested, and then yelped when Draco reprimanded him by giving a sharp tug on his hair.

"I told you I would handle it," Harry cringed at the glare from his fiancé; Draco was obviously very pissed, "As Harry's fiancé I do have the right to remove him from the hospital wing, and I shall. You don't want another visit from the school governors, do you? If I recall, it didn't go too well for you last time." There was no response from Dumbledore, and Harry could see the despair on Zacharias' face; exactly what was going on here?

"Very well," Dumbledore said finally, "I cannot prevent you from taking Harry back to your rooms, however you will need to sign the appropriate forms before you leave. I shall keep Harry company until you return. Mister Smith; you should return to your common room. No arguments!" Zacharias snapped his mouth closed and left the hospital room, but not before sending a pleading look at Harry and a death glare at Draco.

"I shall be back momentarily," Draco said as he stood, "In the meantime, I want you to get dressed Harry; I expect you to be ready to go when I return." Harry frowned at the command, but decided not to protest when Draco kissed his forehead before leaving.

"I need to speak with you before he returns," Dumbledore said quietly, "I don't know what you remember Harry, but I can assure you it isn't the truth. Don't interrupt!" Dumbledore cast a silencing charm on Harry, smiling apologetically, "I'm afraid there is no time for questions or interruptions. During the summer Draco Malfoy tricked you into taking on the labyrinth challenge, and you lost. As penalty for losing, you essentially became Draco's property, and he forced you to accept his proposal. For the past few months he has been controlling you, keeping you from your friends whenever possible, and abusing you as well. He has put you in the hospital numerous times, and each time it gets worse. You had a relationship with Zacharias Smith and the two of you were in love, however Draco threatened to kill him unless you broke it off, so you did as he commanded. Zacharias has still been supporting you as much as possible, and he is usually the one who finds you and brings you to the hospital wing. Harry, Draco is dangerous; whenever he feels that you are getting too used to the situation he wipes your memory just so he can break you again. I have discovered a ritual that will break the bond between you, all it requires is your willingness to transfer the bond to another person, such as Zacharias; Harry-I beg you! Perform the ritual!"

"What ritual are you talking about, Headmaster?" the cold voice interrupted again, "I hope you are not attempting to interfere in our relationship once again, because this time I can assure you, you will spend time in Azkaban." Dumbledore made no reply, but cancelled the silencing spell on Harry and left. Now that the headmaster was gone, Harry threw the covers back and started to climb out of the bed, only to have Draco push him back down, his grey eyes burning with anger; "What was he telling you? And don't you dare even think about lying to me!"

"Why would I lie?" Harry asked, "Dumbledore is trying to say that you've been abusing me and he wants me to let him break our bond. I think he's lost his mind, I mean, does he honestly expect me to believe him? I know you love me Draco, and I love you and I won't let him interfere."

"Good," Draco said decisively, allowing Harry to sit back up, "Now get dressed so we can get out of here." Harry nodded and began changing out of his pajamas into real clothes. Once he was fully dressed he reached for his wand on the bedside table, but Draco got to it first. "Pomfrey said not to let you use magic for the next two days, and afterwards you are only to use magic when necessary during class. Come on." Draco placed a hand on Harry's hip possessively and guided him out of the hospital wing and to their rooms.

"I'm so glad to be back where I'm safe," Harry gave a relieved sigh as he stepped into the sitting room, "I'm going to take a shower Dray." He made his way up to the bedroom, only to be stopped by an arm on his elbow; Draco looked royally pissed, and Harry meekly followed as his fiancé forcefully pulled him the rest of the way up the stairs before pushing him into the bedroom. "Draco-what-?" Draco didn't respond, but merely pushed Harry roughly against the wall, slamming a fist beside his head.

"What have I told you about speaking to that Hufflepuff?" Draco demanded angrily.

"What?" Harry was confused, "I-you didn't say anything about it, did you? But I wasn't willingly talking to him anyway; I woke up and he was there, and then he wouldn't tell me where you were. He kept trying to convince me that we were together and-did I hit my head when I fell during practice? Because nothing is making sense right now Draco."

"Yes," Draco nodded, calming down slightly, "You did injure your head when you fell, but there's only one thing you need to remember;" he grabbed a fistful of Harry's dark locks and pulled his head back, making the brunet wince from the pain, "You. Are. Mine." Draco growled and then pressed his lips to the smaller boy's in a brutal kiss; with his free hand Draco gripped Harry's hip harshly, and the other boy whimpered in pain.

"Draco!" Harry protested as he pulled away, "You're hurting me! Ow!" While Harry was talking Draco began to kiss a path down the side of his neck only to bite down sharply on Harry's collar bone. "Stop it Draco!" He pushed at Draco's shoulders and the other boy stepped back, giving him a disgusted look.

"Fine," Draco sneered, "Go take a shower. I have better things to do than listen to a whiny fiancé when all I was trying to do was show you how glad I am that you're okay; I was worried about you being in the hospital wing, and then Dumbledore sent me to McGonagall for some bull shit reason to keep me away from you. But you know what? I guess I was worried for nothing; you obviously don't care about me."

"Draco," Harry began, but the blond merely glared at him before turning away, "I didn't mean to make you feel bad Dray, you were just being rougher than I'm used to; I didn't realize you were so worried, and of course I care about you-I love you." He walked up behind the blond and wrapped his arms around his waist; Draco stiffened, but didn't pull away, so Harry rested his head on his shoulder; "Let me go take a shower and then I'll make it up to you, okay?"

"Make it up to me?" Draco questioned, "How?"

"Any way that you want me to," Harry responded, and Draco turned around in his arms, pressing a passionate kiss to Harry's lips.

"Okay," the Slytherin smirked, "Go take your shower, and then I'm going to hold you to that promise." Harry shook his head and smiled back at his lover before heading for the bathroom; "Oh, and Harry?" He stopped and looked over his shoulder, waiting for Draco to continue, "Clothing will not be required when you get out of the shower." Harry blushed and nodded as he entered the bathroom, Draco's chuckles ringing in his ears.

When Harry got out of the shower twenty minutes later he was wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist, another towel in his hand was being used to dry his hair.

"Alright Dray, what do you want me to…" Harry trailed off as he caught sight of Draco, leaning casually against the bedpost, wearing a pair of tight black leather pants and nothing else; the sight of his sex-god fiancé left Harry's mouth dry and his mind blanked out-all he could think was wow…so he said it. "Wow."

"I'm glad you approve," Draco smirked, "Now, lose the towel and climb into the bed." Harry thoughtlessly obeyed, moving as if in a daze as he crawled to the center of the bed and lay down on his back. "No; on your hands and knees, grip the headboard for me Luv." Harry turned over and placed his hands on the headboard and then Draco climbed up on the bed behind him; using a length of rope Draco bound Harry's hands to the head board and then shifted back to push his legs apart, using magic to keep them spread. Draco removed Harry's glasses, tossing them carelessly to the side, and then climbed off the bed.

"What are you doing Dray?" Harry asked, but Draco didn't respond and the brunet frowned; Draco had been doing a lot of that today, not answering him, and it was strange because Draco always had a response ready. His fiancé silence had Harry feeling nervous, and he was completely unprepared for the heavy blow that landed on his ass. "Ow! Draco! What the hell?!" Another blow was landed and Harry yelped, fighting his bonds to get away; "This isn't-fuck! Stop it! It's not funny!"

"It's not supposed to be funny," Draco replied calmly as he continued to smack the paddle against Harry's ass, waiting a few seconds between each hit, "This is punishment for talking to Smith, and for not quitting the quidditch team when I told you to; you also weren't dressed when I came back as I instructed. You have to learn to listen to me Pet, and that's why you're being punished." Harry shook his head wordlessly, biting his bottom lip to avoid making any noise, pulling against his bonds to try and escape the blows. "Have you learned your lesson yet Harry?" Harry nodded furiously, only to cry out as another blow landed, harder than the previous ones. "I don't believe you have; you haven't even apologized yet. I suppose I'll have to step up your punishment a bit."

With that said, the blows came faster and harder, and now Harry was unable to prevent the whimpers that came out as tears streamed down his face. What did Draco want? Why was he being so cruel? Harry began to get angry at the way Draco was treating him and let out a small growl; Draco somehow managed to hear this and he dropped the paddle on the bed, grabbing Harry by his hair and yanking his head back at a harsh angle.

"Did you just growl at me?" Draco demanded, "Who do you think you are Potter? You agreed to this, both when you signed yourself over to me at the start of the labyrinth and when you promised to do anything before you got in the shower. You disobeyed me, and now you are going to get the punishment you deserve. Now, since you decided to fight me I will have to increase your punishment."

"Let me go right now!" Harry commanded, then remembered the safe word Draco had told him to use if things ever got too uncomfortable, "Sev."

"Oh no," Draco laughed, and Harry was startled to see the steel in his eyes, "This isn't a game Pet; this is punishment, and I will teach you to obey me." He leaned down to ravage Harry's mouth with a punishing kiss, biting at the other boy's lips hard enough to draw blood before suddenly releasing his hair and moving away. Harry hung his head and fought back tears as he heard Draco rummaging around for something, and then there was a loud whistle before.

"Fuck!" Harry cried out as a line of fire spread across his backside, followed quickly by a second, which left him breathless with pain.

"Yes, I believe this shall do nicely," Draco mused as he moved around to the front of the bed and placed the riding crop under Harry's chin, forcing the brunet to look at him, "You are to count out twenty lashes," Draco instructed, "once you count twenty you will apologize and, if you sound sincere, I will end your punishment. Do you understand?" Harry swallowed nervously and nodded.

"Please," he whispered, "Don't do this Dray; I'm sorry for upsetting you."

"Save the apology for later," Draco said, moving to kneel behind him on the bed once again, "and don't forget-count to twenty." That was the only warning Harry had before the crop landed against his ass again, and he cried out; "One!" The second blow landed immediately after the first, and Harry could only gasp in pain, counting "Two!" as the third blow landed. Draco was relentless with the lashing, and Harry was two numbers behind in the counting, sobbing at the pain as the blows continued to rain down. When he finally counted out twenty, Harry sobbed in relief, forgetting the rest of Draco's order until the crop landed another blow. "What do you say Harry?"

"I-I'm sorry," Harry said, "Please Draco, no more; I-I'll try to be better, and I won't talk to Smith again."

"Good boy," Draco praised, raking his nails over the welts running from Harry's shoulder down to his ass; he reached between the brunet's legs, and Harry was embarrassed when slender fingers wrapped around his hardened member. "Mmm, good; you remembered your lessons about finding pleasure in pain." He began to slowly stroke Harry's cock as he continued speaking, "You know I don't like punishing you Harry, but as my fiancé you have certain standards to live up to and it's my responsibility to make sure you are a credit to the Malfoy family; you understand, don't you?"

"Yes," he really didn't, but Harry was not eager to make Draco angry again, and the hand on his cock felt so good, "Please Draco…"

"What do you want Pet?" Draco asked, and Harry frowned-why did Draco keep calling him Pet, he always called him Lion before…he lost track of the thought as Draco placed a kiss on one of his welts, sucking on the fiery line and causing more pain; "Do you want to feel me inside you? Is that what you want? My hard cock rammed up your tight little ass, pounding you into the bed until you cum screaming my name?"

"Yes," Harry gasped as Draco's words served to make him even harder, "Please Draco; need you inside me…show me…show me that I'm yours." This-this would make everything better, Harry knew; he wanted Draco inside him, proving to Harry how much he cared.

"I want to take you like this," Draco whispered, "No stretching; I want to push my cock inside and feel you stretch around me, with only a little bit of lube to smooth the way." Harry nodded wordlessly; Draco's voice in his ear was so hot…He heard a whispered spell as Draco summoned some lube and Harry frowned as a thought occurred to him-Draco didn't need to verbalize such a simple spell…

"Oh!" Harry gasped and the thought vanished as he felt the tip of Draco's slickened member pressing against his puckered hole.

"I am going to push in slowly," Draco told him, leaning forward to nip his ear; Harry winced at the increased burn on his welts, but the pain wasn't so bad now; "I want you to feel every inch of me as I stretch your tight little hole…" Harry let out a shaky breath as the head of Draco's cock pushed past the tight ring of muscles at his entrance. True to his word, Draco pushed in slowly, letting Harry feel the burn and talking dirty the whole time.

"Wait," Harry said once Draco was fully sheathed, "I need just a minute to-" He broke off with a gasp as Draco ignored his words and pulled almost all the way out before slamming back in, holding Harry's hips in a vice-like grip that was sure to leave bruises.

"I am going to fuck you into the mattress," Draco hissed, "and I want to hear you screaming my name." He leaned forward to place a biting kiss on Harry's shoulder and then straightened up as he set a fast, brutal pace that had Harry pulling against his restraints. This…it wasn't right; Harry shook his head as Draco took him roughly. Draco was never like this, it was like he was still angry, using sex as a punishment…but Harry was still hard, still turned on from having his fiancé inside of him no matter how rough it was.

"Please Dray," he moaned, "Touch me; let me cum! Please; need you!"

"Yes," Draco hissed, reaching one hand down to roughly stroke Harry's cock, "Feels so good being inside your tight ass…want to feel you clench around me, milking me dry as I shoot my load deep in your hole. You're mine Harry; say it, scream my name!"

"Merlin yes!" Harry cried, "I'm yours Draco…always yours! Love you…love feeling you inside me…please; more! I'm gonna-I'm so close-gonna cum! Draco!" Harry cried out his lovers name as he came, and felt Draco stiffening behind him, and then the blond collapsed on top of him. The pain in the welts on his back brought Harry back from that incredible high sooner than he would have liked, and he squirmed uncomfortably beneath Draco's weight.

"Draco?" he said hesitantly, "My…my back hurts? Will you please heal it?"

"Mmm, no," Draco replied, straightening and drawing his nails across Harry's abused skin; "It wouldn't be much of a punishment if I healed you immediately, now would it? Just think of these as reminders to behave; if you behave over the next couple of days then I will heal you." Draco pulled out of Harry and climbed off the bed, "Now, I need a shower."

"Wait!" Harry protested when Draco failed to release his bonds, "What about me? You can't just leave me here like this!"

"Oh, of course," Draco said, crossing back over to the bed, "How thoughtless of me." Draco leaned down to kiss Harry, just a gentle brushing of lips, and then Harry felt a hand trail down his back to his clenching hole; he felt something smooth and metal-cool press against his opening, and then gasped as his hole was breached again.

"Ah! Draco! What-?" He felt even more uncomfortable when a metal ring was secured around his balls, and his penis was encased in what felt like a metal cage.

"It's called a chastity device," Draco replied, "And this, of course, is a butt plug." He pressed on the flat end of the plug, making it press against Harry's prostate and causing the brunet to arch into the pleasure. "Now, do you require anything else before I take my shower?"

"You-you're really going to leave me like this?" Harry asked in disbelief, "Why?"

"Discipline," Draco replied, smacking Harry's ass once as he moved away, "I just want to ensure you behave while I'm in the shower."

"Why can't I just shower with you?"

"You already had your shower today," Draco said, "I'll cast a cleansing charm on you before we go to bed to night. Now, while I shower I want you to think about why you're in this position today; I will be back shortly." Before Harry could reply Draco entered the bathroom, leaving Harry alone and bound on the bed.

It was an hour before Draco came out of the bathroom, and Harry shifted uncomfortably in his bonds; his wrists were raw from pulling at the rope, his thighs hurt from the magical bonds keeping his legs spread, his back burned from his "punishment", and his hole was sore from being taken without preparation. All-in-all, Harry was pissed.

"Let me go right now Malfoy!" He growled when the blond re-entered the room, "Just because I agreed to marry you that doesn't give you the right treat me like this! If you don't let me go-"

"What?" Draco interrupted, "You'll leave me for Smith? Ask Dumbledore to break our bond? If that's the way you feel then you obviously haven't learned your lesson yet." Harry let out a yelp as Draco grabbed a fistful of his hair and yanked his head back; "You are mine-you agreed to it, and that gives me the right to do anything I want to that tight little body of yours. I was going to release you after my shower, but I think you need a bit more time in time-out. Of course, I don't want to hear you yelling and pleading with me while I do my homework, and I can't have you summoning one of the house elves, so…" Draco held up a gag and forced it in Harry's mouth, securing it behind his head. He then placed a collar around Harry's neck complete with a leash hooked to the back of the collar which he wrapped around the end of the butt plug and then attached to the chastity device, keeping Harry's head pulled back at an awkward angle.

"These toys were designed especially for our use," Draco informed him, "The collar and leash have a built-in stinging hex, which will be activated anytime you think about Smith, Dumbledore, or leaving or betraying me. I will check back with you after dinner to see if you are properly repentant." Draco placed a sharp smack on Harry's ass, and the brunet whimpered quietly into his gag. A few minutes later he heard Draco sit down at the desk and open a book, and he thought about how badly he'd like to hex the blond-and then gasped as a stinging sensation ran from the collar, down the leash and to the butt plug and chastity device, sending little stinging pains to his most intimate areas.

"I warned you," Draco said and Harry could hear the amusement in his voice, "By the time this punishment is over perhaps you will have re-thought your loyalties." Harry closed his eyes at the pain he felt in his heart, as he considered Dumbledore's words when he awoke. Through the stinging pain that assaulted his senses, Harry was forced to admit that perhaps the headmaster had been telling the truth and all his memories of Draco were a lie; the cold-hearted Slytherin behind him certainly bore no resemblance to the caring Draco of his dreams. Tears leaked from Harry's eyes as he felt his heart breaking, and the stinging pain increased until he forced his thoughts away from Dumbledore and plots, and instead recalled the first time he remembered Draco making love to him in a hidden clearing in Terre de Espérer Éternelle …

In an empty room in a quiet house lay a teenage boy, his left hand still gripping tightly to his Firebolt and his wire-rimmed glasses hanging off his face. He breathing was labored as tears streamed down his unconscious face, and he moved restlessly on the floor as if in pain. Harry Potter lay helpless, a savior waiting to be saved…

**AN: And so Dumbledore's evil plot is enacted; I'm afraid things won't be too good for Harry over the next chapter or so, but Dumbles will get his in the end. Not entirely sure why I chose Zacharias for the Luna imposter, but he really wanted the job, and who am I to argue? I'm trying to portray the evil Draco as being similar in actions to the regular Draco in my story, only more, well, evil. I know my chapters are a little slow getting out, but I haven't been able to write much with my crazy schedule at work. I will continue to update at least every two weeks, although I will try to update earlier than that whenever possible. Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and please keep the reviews coming!**


	28. Chapter 27

"Let's check around the Quidditch stands before we split up," Draco suggested to Hermione, "Since Harry was seen talking to the fake Luna here maybe we can find some clue as to what happened."

"Good idea," Hermione nodded, "Ron, which area was Harry sitting in when you saw him?"

"Umm, they were over in the Ravenclaw stands," Ron replied, "Somewhere near the middle of the stands I think."

"Even if something was left behind it might have fallen or gotten kicked away," Seamus pointed out, "The imposter may even have dropped it somewhere else on the pitch."

"So we break into pairs and search," Hermione said, "Ron with me, Seamus with Neville, and Draco and Luna. Seamus, you and Neville should search the pitch, and the four of us will search the stands." Seamus and Neville nodded, and started to walk the Quidditch pitch, while Ron, Hermione, Draco and Luna headed up to the Ravenclaw stands. By unspoken agreement the four students split up and began slowly making their way up the stands, looking under the benches for anything suspicious. The stands were cleaned after every game, so there wasn't much to be seen, although Ron did find seven sickles and a handful on knuts which he quickly put in his pocket despite Hermione's disapproving look.

"Here!" Draco called, leaning down to examine something about halfway up the stands, "I think I may have found something!" Hermione, Ron and Luna hurried to join him, and Draco pointed at a silver goblet lying under one of the benches. "I need something to put it in, and a way to pick it up."

"Here," Hermione handed him a small bag that she pulled out of her pocket, "If you hold this I'll levitate it into the bag."

"No levitating," Draco countered, "The goblet should have traces of the magical signature of anyone who touched it, and if we use magic that will make the traces harder to sort out. "I need a cloth or something…"

"Here," Luna took a purple sparkly scarf out of her purse-Harry was right, Draco mused absently, he hadn't even realized Luna brought her purse until she pulled out the scarf-and handed it to Draco; "I transfigured it when Harry was still in the labyrinth, so the snifflepods should be gone by now."

"Yes, it has been long enough that your magical signature should not interfere with those already on the goblet," Draco nodded and took the scarf from Luna, carefully wrapping it around the goblet before placing it in the bag, "If Sev was here he could separate the signature's quickly, but since he is gone I think our best bet would be to contact Fred and George. Harry got a letter from them before we returned to the realm to rescue Sirius, detailing some of the inventions they created to help out the aurors, and one of them is a magical signature detector."

"I don't think we should take the goblet off school grounds," Hermione protested, "What if something happens to it?"

"You hold on to it then," Draco said, "Luna, Neville and I will go to the twins store and return with the magical signature detector, while you three can continue looking for more clues as to what actually happened to Harry. Actually…it's been long enough for any spilled liquid to have dried, but I remember one of the Weasley Professors-Bill, I believe-mentioned a spell that can-"

"Oh, yes! I remember!" Hermione interrupted excitedly, "It's one the auror's use when looking for traces of spilled potions!" She pulled out her wand and aimed it at the bench, murmuring an incantation that made the area in which they had found the goblet glow for a moment before a small amount of liquid was drawn from the wood. Draco reached into his pocket and pulled out a small crystal phial and Hermione directed the liquid in there.

"Maybe we should take what we have and go into the school," Ron suggested, "What if Dumbledore had something to do with this? He can see the pitch from his office, and we don't want him to catch us."

"You should go then," Draco nodded towards the school, "Here comes McGonagall, and she seems to tell the headmaster everything. You guys head back up to the school; tell her we were looking for clues, but don't tell her what we found-not yet." Hermione nodded and hid the clues that they had found in her pocket as they headed back down the stands to meet Neville and Seamus who were coming to join them.

"We found some clues," Hermione informed the other two boys, "but we need to get back to the school and to the Room of Requirement. Neville, you guys are going to the twins shop. How will you get there Draco?"

"By using a portal," Luna replied, taking Neville and Draco by the hand and pulling them towards the Forbidden Forest, "We have to hurry before the whifflehammers stop us!"

"Go," Hermione said, "We'll distract McGonagall. Come on Ron, Seamus. Professor!" Hermione shouted and ran towards McGonagall with Seamus and Ron close behind, while the other three headed towards the Whomping Willow. Draco pulled out the map provided by the Room of Requirement and tapped the picture of the tree with his wand; the image of the tree enlarged and showed Draco using his wand to levitate a stick and probe at a knot on the tree. Draco quickly put the map away and copied the illustration; the tree branches quickly stopped moving, and Neville moved forward to enter a hidden tunnel. Luna followed Neville, and Draco came last, sliding in just as the tree branches began to move once again. The tunnel went on for quite a while, finally emerging into a dilapidated and obviously abandoned house.

"Now you can open the portal," Luna said, "It should open into the twins shop."

"I've only ever opened portals between here and home," Draco frowned, "I wasn't even aware that I could open portals between different areas here, but I suppose it should be the same principal…what is the name of their shop again? Weasley's Wizarding Wheeze's?"

"Yeah," Neville nodded, "It's in Diagon Alley, near Gringotts." Draco nodded and walked over to a door on the other side of the living room which he assumed led to a bedroom or study and grasped the doorknob, closing his eyes and focusing on creating the portal. A few moments later the door glowed blue and he smiled in triumph; he pulled the door open and saw a storeroom with the triple W logo he was familiar with.

"Okay, let's go," Draco motioned Luna and Neville through the portal and then followed, hoping that the twins really would be able to assist him with locating Harry.

"Welcome to-oh, Hullo Mrs. Malfoy!" Narcissa was greeted by one of the Weasley twins as she walked through the door and into the shop, "What can we do for you? Are you in the market for extra protection? Or perhaps pranks to play on young Draco?"

"Perhaps some other time," Narcissa declined, "I need to speak with my cousin; is Sirius here yet?"

"Yeah, he's upstairs," the boy replied, "Fred and I offered to let him stay in our spare room until he takes care of things with the Order. Is everything alright?"

"No," Narcissa shook her head, "Severus just gave me some news about Harry that Sirius needs to be made aware of; in fact, you and Fred should probably hear this as well-Harry has said numerous times that you are brilliant, so perhaps you can help."

"I'll help in any way I can," George replied, "and I can guarantee Fred will as well. Is Harry in a lot of trouble? Is it Dumbledore?" He led her up the stairs as they spoke.

"I will tell you all I know once we are all gathered," Narcissa replied, "Although I am afraid that is not much at the moment." George nodded his understanding as they came to the landing.

"Fred! Sirius!" George called, leading Narcissa into the sitting room and gesturing for her to have a seat, "We have company!" A moment later the other twin, Fed, came out of one of the other rooms with Sirius following.

"Cissa!" Sirius greeted her with a smile, "You'll never believe some of the things the twins have invented! I can't wait to try them out on Severus; he won't know what hit him!"

"Oh, I am sure he will know it was you," Narcissa replied with a wry smile before becoming solemn, "Sirius, I am not here just for a visit; Severus contacted Remus and myself and advised us that Harry has gone missing."

"What?!" Sirius exclaimed, "Harry's missing? What happened? They haven't even been back for a full day and Snape lost my godson already? What the fuck?!"

"Sirius! Watch your language," Narcissa glared at her cousin, "It is hardly Severus' fault that Harry has gone missing, however I am unsure as to exactly what happened; Severus and Remus had to leave immediately because Dumbledore convinced Severus that Greyback's pack of werewolves may have kidnapped Harry. We need to go to the school and speak to Draco to find out what happened and-what are you doing?" Narcissa directed the question to Fred who, upon hearing that Harry was missing, had run into the room he and Sirius had just exited and returned with a map.

"This is our Family Locator Map," Fred replied, "We have it attuned to all the members of our family, including Harry and Hermione; we planned to add Draco, but we hadn't had the chance yet. Locate Harry Potter." The map glowed for a moment and then an indistinct image appeared, along with the words "In a secure location".

"Well, according to the map he is in a safe place," George said, "but it's warded so we can't find him."

"He's safe?" The small group turned to the door and saw Draco, Neville and Luna standing there; Draco looked extremely relieved, then frowned, "No, wait; you just said he's in a safe place, but not whether or not he has been injured."

"Right," Fred nodded, "Wherever he is he's safe, but that doesn't mean he wasn't injured before he got there…George, why is his name glowing red?" George frowned and stood next to his brother.

"That means he is injured," George replied, "So we need to find him. Hey, how did you guys get here? Does Dumbledore know you left the school?"

"We snuck into the Shrieking Shack and then I opened a portal," Draco replied, "and Dumbledore has no idea where we are. We actually came to ask for your help in finding Harry, or at least figuring out what happened to him."

"What did happen, Draco?" Narcissa asked, "Severus just told me Harry is missing, however he did not have time to give me the details." So Draco filled Narcissa, Sirius and the twins in on what he knew, and told them about the clues they had found.

"Well, just let us lock up the shop and we'll come with you," George said as Fred headed downstairs, "Can you open up a portal back into the Shrieking Shack?"

"Of course," Draco replied, "In fact, I may even be able to open one directly into the school…Mother?"

"Hmm, I believe it should work if you open it into the room you share with Harry," Narcissa mused, "Sirius and I shall apparate to Hogsmeade as we need to speak with the headmaster and he would become suspicious if we suddenly appeared in the school."

"Meet us in the Room of Requirement after you speak to Dumbles then," Draco said as Fred re-joined the group, "We'll start by figuring out what happened, and remember to be careful because we still haven't located the fake Luna."

"And I still want to know how she fooled the map," Sirius scowled, "Even with polyjuice potion it shouldn't be possible, as the map reads a person's magical signature."

"We'll figure it out," Fred assured him, "And we'll find a way to fix it."

"You children be careful," Narcissa cautioned, "and send us a message if you encounter any trouble or when you find Harry."

"Don't worry," Luna said, smiling sweetly at everyone, "we will have help soon, the blibbering humdingers have assured me of it." Without waiting for a response she nodded at Draco, and he opened a portal into the school; it took more concentration than any of his previous portals, but the group was able to step into his and Harry's private quarters, and from there make their way up to the Room of Requirement, courtesy of the Disillusionment Charms cast by Fred and George. They cancelled the charms when they got to the room, and found Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Theo, Pansy and Blaise already there.

"What happened to the others?" Draco asked.

"We decided that they should continue searching while we meet up to solve the clues," Hermione replied before looking anxiously at the twins, "Can you guys help us?"

"Of course," George replied, taking a small green bottle out of his pocket, "This potion will discover the magical signature of anyone who has touched the object, so we will use it first, but then-"

"We can use this potion," Fred continued, pulling out a purple bottle, "to see the objects memories; it's a new potion, which is why we should use the other one first."

"Good; we may know why Harry passed out," Ginny said, "We searched in the infirmary and spoke to Pomfrey; she said that she gave Harry a potion to prevent pregnancy at his request, and that he was told not to combine it with any other potions or it could react in very bad ways."

"A potion to prevent pregnancy?" Draco frowned, "Those are normally reserved for witches, or if a male has already taken a pregnancy potion and wishes to have it reversed. Harry knows that he would need a potion to get pregnant, so why would he take one to prevent pregnancy? Especially without talking to me first?"

"Well, he took it after speaking to Dumbledore," Pansy replied, "So perhaps the headmaster convinced him to take it."

"Which means we need to identify that potion immediately," Hermione said, "Draco, isn't there a potion that can be used to identify other potions?"

"Yes," Draco replied, "However it takes twenty-four hours to brew, and Sev has increased the wards on his potions cabinet so I doubt I can break in; what we need is a vial of the potion available to us now." There was a shimmer in the air in front of them, and Draco reached out just in time to catch a phial filled with a pale blue potion. "Well, that was easy. Can we have a cauldron please, and the other items we will need to figure out what happened to Harry?" A cauldron appeared with other necessary potions instruments, as well as a vial of silver potion and a single black hair in a vial.

"What is that?" Ron frowned, pointing at the new potion.

"I have no idea," Draco replied, "but we should worry about one thing at a time. Fred, George-while I identify the potion, you two go ahead and examine the goblet." The twins nodded and Hermione handed over the goblet, before giving the liquid they had discovered in the Quidditch stands to Draco. The group of students separated, with Hermione, Luna, Theo and Pansy following Draco over to one side of the room to watch him work, while Ron, Neville, Blaise and Ginny followed the twins to the other side of the room.

They worked quietly for the better part of an hour; Draco had already discovered the purpose of the liquid they had found on the Quidditch pitch but was keeping the information to himself while he worked on the silver potion provided by the room. Once he was finished with that one, he growled and faced the room; he saw that Fred and George obviously had some answers as well, so they met around the table.

"Dumbledore is involved in this, I am certain," Draco began, "The potion we found outside earlier is designed to make the person who takes it believe anything that the person who gave it to him says; the potion simply requires the hair of the person who wants to make someone believe them. I was able to determine that Dumbledore gave Harry this potion, which obviously reacted badly with the one given to Harry by Madame Pomfrey and caused him to faint. This other potion that the room provided us allows you to basically invade someone's mind and change the way they perceive reality."

"Which means Dumbles is still trying to tear you two apart," Theo said thoughtfully, "he must be using Harry's unconsciousness to convince him to turn against you."

"We also found traces of Dumbles' magic on the goblet," Fred replied, "As well as Luna's magic, and with the other potion we found we discovered that the third magical signature belongs to Zacharias Smith, that Hufflepuff who always caused problems for Harry during D.A. meetings last year; the goblets memory showed Smith taking two different potions, one of which was obviously polyjuice."

"_Smith_ was the Luna imposter?!" Ron cried incredulously, "But…Why?"

"Oh, I intend to find out," Draco growled lowly, "Just as soon as I find him." He reached into his pocket and pulled out the Marauder's Map, quickly activating it; "Smith is in Dumbledore's office, so we can confront both of them at once. Let's go; we'll find Mother and Sirius along the way." Everyone nodded their agreement and followed Draco out of the room and towards Dumbledore's office in the hopes of finding out exactly what had happened to Harry.

"You've been doing very well Harry," Draco praised the brunet, running a hand through the thick locks as he watched Harry doing his homework, "and you haven't spoken to Smith or Dumbledore?"

"No, Draco," Harry replied, "I haven't spoken to anyone you don't want me to; I want to make you happy." He raised his head and met cold grey eyes, although Draco did have a small smile of approval on his face. "I'm finished with my potions essay; did you want to look it over?" Draco nodded and motioned for Harry to get up; the Gryffindor quickly obeyed and stood by quietly while his fiancé read his essay.

It had been three days since Harry had woken up in the hospital wing, and he had done his best to do as Draco asked ever since the blond had relented and removed the…toys. Harry still wore the collar because Draco said that he needed to earn his trust back, but it wasn't nearly as painful as the other items. Draco had apologized for hurting him, and said he was just frustrated because Harry wasn't making an effort to fit in with Draco's circle of friends, so Harry made more of an effort; he didn't speak to anyone who was not in Slytherin any longer, and he was especially careful to avoid Dumbledore and Zacharias Smith. Draco had punished him on two other occasions, once for failing his potion and once for not returning to their rooms directly after dinner, but neither punishment had been as severe as the first one, and Harry figured he could deal with it. Things were still a bit rougher than he would like during sex, but afterwards Draco would hold him close and say that Harry was his, which was all the brunet wanted to hear. He did wonder why Draco never called him Lion anymore, but decided against asking.

"This is acceptable," Draco's voice brought him out of his thoughts, "It's better than the last one you wrote anyhow. Now, I have to go to Quidditch practice-are you going to watch, or do you have more homework to finish?"

"I still have my dream journal for Divination," Harry replied quietly, "but it isn't due until Friday, so I can go with you if you like."

"No," Draco shook his head, "Finish your homework and then meet me in the Great Hall for supper." He stood up and pulled Harry in for a bruising kiss before turning and leaving the room without another word. Once Draco was gone Harry sighed and sat down at the desk to finish his divination homework, which only took him about thirty minutes. After he finished his homework he decided to go to the library until suppertime; he wanted to read up more on Pureblood bonding rituals so he could know what to expect.

"Hi Harry," Harry had been reading for almost an hour when the quiet whisper disturbed him; he looked up and then quickly away again when he saw Zacharias Smith.

"Go away Smith," he said, "I'm busy."

"Please don't do this," Smith pleaded, "Harry, don't let him tear us apart like this; I know how he treats you, and I can see that collar he makes you wear…" Harry gasped in pain when Smith touched the collar and it stung him.

"Stop it!" Harry hissed, "My relationship with Draco is none of your business, and the only thing you can do is make it worse! I agreed to marry Draco, which obviously means I have no desire to be with you, so just go away!"

"He tricked you!" Smith insisted, "We can break the bond; Professor Dumbledore said so! Why won't you let us help you!?"

"I don't need your help!" Harry replied, slamming the book he had been reading closed and leaving the library before Madame Pince could start yelling. He didn't get very far, however, before Smith grabbed him by the arm and swung him around. "Let me go!" Harry cried furiously as he fought the Hufflepuff's grip, "Please Smith! I don't want Draco to see this and get the wrong idea!"

"I'll let you go when you listen to me," Smith replied angrily, before forcibly calming himself down, "Harry, please, I love you; let me help you." Before Harry could reply Smith had cupped his cheek and pressed their lips together in a gentle kiss. The movement startled Harry into stillness for a moment, and then he was hit by the stinging hex in the collar and began fighting again, struggling to push Smith away from him.

"No! Stop!" Harry cried, "I don't want you!"

"I love you!" Smith shouted back, leaning in to kiss him again; he had barely brushed his lips against Harry's when he was suddenly yanked away, and Harry looked up to see a furious-

"Draco!" He cried, throwing himself at the blond, "He-I was in the library and-"

"Go to our rooms and wait for me," Draco said in a quiet voice that brooked no arguments, "I will deal with Smith and meet you there. Theo! Blaise! Make sure he makes it there without any problems." The two dark-haired Slytherins nodded and fell into step on either side of Harry, who bowed his head and allowed them to guide him back to his room; Draco was furious, and Harry was frightened of what his fiancé would do, not only to Smith, but to him.

'Stupid, interfering Hufflepuff,' Harry thought darkly; Draco had just begun to trust him again, and now it was all ruined…

"Ah, Mr. Potter!" Harry looked up at the headmaster's cheerful voice, "Just the one I was looking for. Come up to my office, will you?"

"I-I need to go back to my room," Harry protested, shooting a panicked look at Blaise and Theo who merely gazed back expressionlessly, "Someone tried to attack me, and Draco wants me to be safe so-"

"I really must insist Harry," Dumbledore said, "Your friends may wait for you outside, but I have important news to share with you." He placed a strong hand on Harry's shoulder and led him towards his office; as the stone gargoyle leapt out of the way Harry looked over his shoulder to see Blaise staring at them while Theo was walking back in the direction they had come from, obviously to tell Draco about what had happened.

"Now my boy, Lemon Drop?" Harry shook his head wordlessly, "Very well; Harry, I have some very grave news for you. You'll remember we discussed horcruxes?"

"Yes, sir," Harry replied.

"Well, it seems Voldemort knows that we are aware of his horcruxes," Dumbledore continued, "and he has also discovered that you are one; my sources say that he instructed Draco to get you to be with him as a way of controlling you."

"Sir, I don't understand," Harry frowned, "Wouldn't Voldemort just kill me?"

"No," Dumbledore shook his head, "Now that he knows you carry a piece of his soul in you he will protect you as dearly as he protects his own life; since Lucius was able to get the prophesy for him, he decided to reward the Malfoys' by giving you to Draco. Once you are bonded, everything you own will belong to young Draco; that is why I beg you to let me help you break the bond! I have seen how Mr. Malfoy treats you, the bruises and the insults, and since you and Voldemort essentially share a soul he can do so much to hurt you without risking your death."

"I-I don't believe you," Harry shook his head in denial, "Draco would never do that; he loves me! He never hurt me until you and Smith interfered, so this is your fault! Stay away from me Dumbledore!" Harry drew his wand and sent a hex at the headmaster and then turned around and ran from the office before he could see if it hit.

"Blaise!" Harry panted as he practically ran into the Slytherin, "I-I need to-get away-Dumbledore mad!"

"Then let's go Potter," Blaise said calmly, "Draco asked me to wait for you; he was very upset to find out that you didn't do as he said, and he will get angrier the longer you keep him waiting." Harry nodded wordlessly and followed Blaise back to his and Draco's room. "Potter?" Blaise stopped him just before Harry went in, "If you ever tell Draco I said this I will deny it, but you should consider accepting Dumbledore's help." Having said that Blaise turned and left, so Harry had no choice but to enter his room. He gave the password and stepped inside, only to find that the sitting room was dark-the only light came from their bedroom upstairs.

"Draco?" Harry called softly as he climbed the stairs, "I need to tell you what Dumbledore-ah!" Harry cried out in surprise and pain as he was yanked harshly into the bedroom and slammed against the wall; he looked up into glacial eyes and gulped fearfully-yes, Draco was seriously pissed and he, Harry, was about to pay for it…

"It's no use Severus," Remus said tiredly as the potions master tried throwing another hex at the door; just like the other times he tried casting a spell, Severus' wand didn't emit so much as a spark; "The only reason they let us keep our wands is because this cell has been magic-proofed; this whole thing was nothing but a trap."

"Orchestrated by Dumbledore no doubt," Severus agreed scowling, "How he managed to convince Greyback to help him though, I have no idea. Blasted meddling fool!" He kicked over the wooden bench by the wall, desperately wishing his wand worked so that he could blast it into a million pieces. "We need to find Harry; there's no telling if he's injured, or how much danger he's in-if Dumbledore would work with the werewolves' what is to stop him from betraying Harry to the Dark Lord?"

"I doubt he would turn Harry over to Voldemort," Remus tried to calm Severus, "He most likely arranged all of this so that he could have a chance to convince Harry to listen to him; he probably staged Harry's disappearance and then arranged to get us out of the way so that we couldn't interfere."

"That may be true," Severus mused, "Of course, that doesn't make this situation any better; if Dumbledore wanted to get us out of the way so that we are unable to influence Harry he would most likely try to get rid of Draco as well."

"Not to mention Narcissa and Sirius," Remus frowned, "Sirius is probably confronting Dumbledore right now-I hope Narcissa can make him keep his temper, or at least cast a silencing charm on him; there's no telling what Dumbledore might do if Sirius makes him angry enough."

Severus didn't respond, and Remus saw that he was pacing, moving his lips silently as he worked through an idea.

"Of course!" Severus cursed under his breath, "Dumbledore knew Parkinson was in the school-remember how hard he fought to prevent him from getting a trial? Dumbledore managed to get Parkinson's trial pushed back two years-which he will be spending in Azkaban; he obviously did not want Lord Parkinson to inform the ministry that Dumbledore allowed him into the school!"

"But why would he let him in in the first place?" Remus questioned, "And when did he let Parkinson in? Has something else happened?"

"Yes, I forgot to mention it in the rush to locate Harry," Severus admitted, "Earlier today Harry and Draco each encountered people impersonating their friends; Parkinson impersonated Blaise, but whoever was impersonating Luna managed to get away before we could discover their identity. The imposters seemed to be focused on driving a wedge between Harry and Draco, and almost succeeded; Draco was nearly convinced that Harry had been cheating on him with Ginerva Weasley. Parkinson was arrested, but the fake Luna was still on the loose when I left; she may have played a part in Harry's disappearance."

"This doesn't make any sense!" Remus growled in frustration, "Why would Dumbledore work with Death Eater's and werewolves'? Dammitt! We need to get out of here and make sure everyone is safe!"

"We will find a way," Severus assured him, "They will open the door eventually and we must be ready for them. Luckily, I never depend on my wand alone." Severus reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a vial filled with a smoky-looking potion. "I need a drop of your blood Remus." The werewolf looked confused, but complied with the request; he pulled a small dagger out of his boot and used it to prick his finger before allowing a single drop to fall into the vial. "I added a drop of my blood when I brewed the potion," Severus informed him, placing the cork back in place and shaking the vial, "This is a Secrecy Potion; it will muffle the senses of anyone who tries to spy on us-adding our blood makes us immune to the effects of the potion." Having said this Severus promptly threw the vial at the wall and it shattered; a smoky grey fog filled the room for a few moments before settling along the edges of the floor, walls and ceiling.

"So now we are secure?" Remus questioned and Severus nodded.

"Yes; this is a potion that I just recently developed," he explained, "Neither Dumbledore nor the Dark Lord are aware of its existence. Now; here are a few offensive potions I created." He pulled several vials out of his robe and handed them to Remus, explaining what each of them did. There was a potion to create a blinding light, freezing and burning potions, potions to mimic the cruciatus curse, the body-bind hex, jelly-legs jinx, several knock-out potions as well as numerous others that would mimic specific hexes and curses. Severus had Remus add a drop of blood to each potion; Severus had created his arsenal of potions to be safe to his allies, while causing maximum damage to his enemies.

"Well, this will help when they open the door," Remus admitted, "but what if they leave us in here until the full moon? Without the wolfsbane potion I'm sure I will attack you."

"Which is why I brought this," Severus smirked as he held up a small vial, "This potion, once I take it, will cause me to smell like pack to any werewolf that comes across me, and it lasts for five days just to be safe." He uncorked the vial and downed the potion before placing the empty bottle back in his pocket.

"Now comes the hard part," Remus sighed, "This is where we wait for them to make a move, right?"

"Perhaps," Severus said slyly as he tilted another vial in his hands, the small overhead light caught gold and red flecks in the purple potion, "Or-we could always do this on our own terms. Ready Lupin?"

"No time like the present," Remus replied with a wolfish grin; he slipped behind Severus and watched as his old school nemesis threw the vial at the cell door where it exploded on impact…

**AN: Okay, so lots of scene-jumping and mini-cliffhangers in this chapter. I hope that this chapter cleared up some of the confusion from the previous chapter; the main question people seemed to have was concerning Harry, so to explain: The potion that Harry inadvertently drank during Quidditch practice reacted badly with the contraceptive potion, causing him to pass out and now he is in a sort of coma. The events that have happened to him are all in his mind; I'll give you three guesses as to who is manipulating his thoughts and the first two don't count, lol. Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and I will update again as soon as I can. Till next time!**


	29. Chapter 28

"Stupid blasted thing won't open!" Sirius growled, slamming his hand against the wall, "We have to get in there and find out what that old coot did to my godson!"

"There must be another way," Narcissa fretted, "Did you never find a hidden passage to the headmaster's chambers when you were in school?" They had been trying unsuccessfully to get into the headmaster's office for the past twenty minutes, and both were getting rather frustrated.

"No," Sirius shook his head, "If there is one it's keyed to only open for the current headmaster. Maybe I can get a broom and fly up to the window…"

"It is warded," Sirius and Narcissa spun around and saw Minerva McGonagall standing behind them, looking uncertain, "I'm glad to see you are alive Sirius; Harry was very hurt when he lost you. I-have information that may help your search for him; I know I should have told someone earlier, however I-" She sighed and shook her head; "Please follow me Sirius, Mrs. Malfoy." Sirius and Narcissa exchanged a glance as the professor began walking down the hallway; Sirius shrugged and they followed her up to her personal office.

"What's going on Minerva?" Sirius asked as the Deputy Headmistress directed them to sit in front of her desk, "Do you know what happened to Harry? And where did Dumbledore send Remus and Severus?"

"This is hard for me," McGonagall began, ignoring his questions for now, "Albus was always-still is-a great wizard, and he cares a great deal about this school and everyone in it-"

"Except for the Slytherin's," Narcissa interrupted drily, "Excuse me, Minerva, but my sons' fiancé is missing and if you know where he is-"

"Just, please let me explain," McGonagall said, "I need you to understand, everything Albus did was for the Greater Good of the wizarding world and-I believed-Harry's own protection; Albus has so much to take care of and with that fool Fudge as minister he has been busier than ever. We have all been so worried about Harry ever since he left his relative's house, and Albus said that your son Draco has been turning him against us and encouraging him to join He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named…" She trailed off, frowning and Sirius and Narcissa waited impatiently for her to continue.

"Enough of this Minerva," Sirius huffed when the older witch remained quiet, "You followed Dumbledore because you thought he was doing the right thing, blah, blah, blah. We get it. Now tell us what's going on or I will borrow some veritaserum from Snape and force the truth out of you! I swear if Harry is being hurt somewhere I will make you suffer for it!" McGonagall was taken aback by Sirius' threat, but it served its purpose as she nodded her head once before continuing.

"Albus wanted to find a way to break Harry and Draco's connection," she said softly, "So he purchased a potion that would make Harry susceptible to anything Albus told him, and he enlisted Zacharias Smith to help him administer it to Harry; from what I understand Albus promised that he would get Harry to bond with Zacharias if they succeeded in separating him from Draco. I am not sure how Smith got close enough to Harry to give him the potion, however Albus was as surprised as everyone else when he vanished. As far as I know Harry is not in any physical danger; the potion merely allows Albus access to his mind and his memories."

"So Dumbledore has invaded my godsons mind to turn him against Draco," Sirius summed up, "Does he not realize that this could cause Harry's death?! Harry and Draco signed a contract with a blood quill-it is binding on both parts, and if Dumbledore convinces Harry to try and break their agreement it will kill him-possibly kill both of them!"

"That man is messing with magic he knows nothing about," Narcissa added coolly, glaring at McGonagall, "The rituals and magic used in my kingdom are vastly different from what you use here; did you know that he has been trying to break into the realm? Your precious Dumbledore has been attempting to take over my kingdom, for the Greater Good I'm sure. What about Severus and Remus? Where did he send them?"

"I did not find out until Albus had already sent him off," McGonagall said, "He sent Severus and Remus to infiltrate a pack of werewolves, but it was a trap; he said that Severus was a traitor and we needed to get him out of the way. I-I don't know if I agree with that, however I would have at least tried to warn Remus; Albus simply used him as a way to get Severus to the werewolves, where Greyback will be waiting to take care of them. I'm afraid they don't have much chance of survival."

"Bullshit!" Sirius said, once more startling McGonagall with his anger, "Give me the coordinates; I'll go find them-no one will be expecting me since they all think I'm dead." McGonagall tightened her lips disapprovingly but none-the-less nodded and wrote down the information on a slip of paper that she slid over to Sirius.

"You can't go alone Cousin," Narcissa said, "You will need back up; use the family mirror to contact Nymphadora-my sister was disowned, but Mother was not able to take the mirror from her and I expect she has passed it onto Nymphadora. Save Severus and Remus and I will help Draco find Harry. Stay safe."

"I will," Sirius promised as he got to his feet; he leaned down and kissed Narcissa on the cheek, "You stay safe too Cissa." He gave McGonagall a terse nod and then left the room.

"Are you willing to help us?" Narcissa asked, "Or do you still intend to protect the headmaster?"

"I can't just turn my back on him," McGonagall replied shaking her head slowly "I owe him too much, and I know that he has our best interests at heart; he merely had a momentary lapse in judgment."

"Very well," Narcissa nodded as she got to her feet, "Then you can stay here while we find Harry." She swept out of the room and, after casting some locking and warding charms on the office, went back down the hallway in search of Draco.

She found Draco, along with a small group of his classmates, about thirty minutes later as they were coming down the main staircase. Draco was leading the group, with Ron and Hermione a few steps behind on his left, Pansy and Blaise on his right, and Ginny and Theo bringing up the rear.

"There you are Draco!" She said, "I have been looking for you; I know what happened to Harry, or at least part of it."

"We found some information as well," Draco informed Narcissa, falling into step beside her, "and we are on our way to confront Dumbledore and Smith to find out where Harry is."

"I am afraid you won't be able to; the headmaster has locked himself in his office," Narcissa informed him, "Sirius and I were unable to get in, however we did speak to Professor McGonagall and she told us that Severus and Remus were sent straight into a trap."

"A trap?" Hermione questioned, "What sort of trap?"

"The kind where Dumbledore sent them to infiltrate a pack of werewolves," Narcissa replied, "and then he told the pack that Severus and Remus were coming."

"No!" Pansy paled, "I overheard Father talking and the Dark Lord has named Severus as a traitor! He will be killed!"

"Calm down dear," Narcissa said softly, "Sirius has the coordinates that they were sent to; he is on his way to rescue them as we speak."

"That means we can focus on finding Harry," Draco said, "Did McGonagall tell you that Harry was given two potions which react badly together?"

"No," Narcissa frowned, "What did you find out?"

"Ginny and Blaise went to the infirmary and spoke to Madame Pomfrey," Draco told her, "She informed them that Dumbledore had sent Harry to her in order to take a contraceptive potion, and that she warned him not to take any other potions for the next twenty-four hours; evidently Dumbledore did not know that and so the mind-invasion potion Smith gave him caused Harry to pass out-now we just need to figure out where Dumbledore sent him…"

"Maybe…maybe Dumbledore didn't send him anywhere," Theo said slowly, "Draco-didn't you say that your bonding rings are emergency port-keys? What if Harry activated his before he passed out?"

"No," Narcissa shook her head, "I programmed the port key to bring the boys back to the castle if activated, and the wards would have alerted me if Harry came through."

"It might have been accidental magic," Hermione mused, "Harry told me about an instance when he was younger, before he attended Hogwarts, where he was trying to run from some bullies and he wound up on the roof of his primary school. What if his body recognized the danger and apparated him to safety? No, wait;" she shook her head, "Apparition does not work on school grounds, so that can't be it…"

"Well, maybe we should search the places where Harry feels safe anyway," Ron suggested, "I'm sure he isn't at the Burrow 'cos Mum would have contacted us by now, but there's still Grimmauld Place and…well, he always said he felt the safest here." The redhead frowned; "Where else can we look?"

"According to the twins map he is in a safe place, but it is warded so that we can't find him," Draco said, "Which means wherever he is, it's most likely under the Fidelius…"Draco trailed off as a haunting melody filled the corridor, and moments later there was a bright flash of light as Fawkes appeared in front of them.

"Fawkes!" Ginny cried, "What are you doing here?" The phoenix trilled, a long high note and looked Draco in the eye.

"What does he want?" Draco frowned when the phoenix turned its back on him, waving its' tail feathers in front of him.

"He wants you to grab on," Ron said excitedly, "That's how he acted in second year when he flew us out of the Chamber of Secrets; maybe Fawkes is taking you to Harry!"

"No," Narcissa protested, "You cannot go alone Draco; what if Harry is injured or there are enemies around?"

"I have to go," Draco said softly, "We can't leave him there; once I find him I can open a portal up back here, and if that fails I will activate my port key to return home. Don't worry Mother; I will return with Harry as soon as possible; Luna has the password to our rooms, so if you like a few of you can wait there and the rest of you can wait at the infirmary. And yes; I will be careful." He gave Narcissa a kiss on the cheek and then took hold of Fawkes' tail; the two vanished in a brilliant flash of fire.

Once he left the school Sirius used Narcissa's mirror to contact Tonks; the young Auror was surprised and delighted to see her favorite cousin alive once again and quickly agreed to join him on his mission to rescue Severus and Remus.

"Okay," Sirius began once they apparated to the coordinates McGonagall had provided; they were in the woods outside of an old stone building where four men were standing guard; "I'm going to turn into my animagus form and try to get in without being noticed-"

"Too dangerous," Tonks interrupted, "You'll be too vulnerable. I'll change my appearance to look like Lucius-" It was Sirius' turn to interrupt her;

"That won't work," he said, "Lucius hasn't reported to Voldemort since the middle of summer and Snape said that he was declared a traitor."

"Okay, then we need another way to get in and find Remus and Snape," Tonks said, "We need a distraction so that one of us can sneak in and find them." As Tonks finished speaking they heard a loud explosion, and watched as the four sentries all ran inside.

"Looks like we got our distraction," Sirius grinned, "Let's go Tonks!" Sirius ran for the building in the center of the werewolf camp with Tonks right behind him; once they got inside they were greeted by chaos-werewolves and low-level Death Eaters were running around, yelling.

"Find them!" One of the Death Eater's was yelling at a werewolf, "The Dark Lord will not be pleased if the traitor Snape escapes; we must find them! Our Lord would prefer to have Snape alive, but if we must kill him to keep him from escaping then so be it."

"This is our base," the werewolf snarled back, "We know this place inside and out-they will not escape. Greyback went to alert the Dark Lord and they will be back within the hour-we will find the prisoners before then. We need to split our people into search groups." The Death Eater nodded and their voices dropped as they walked away.

"They didn't even realize that we're here," Tonks whispered, "Where should we start?"

"This looks like an old Muggle prison," Sirius replied just as quietly, "The most secure cells will most likely be on the lower levels, but I'm sure they've managed to move up from there by now…if only I had a drop of blood from either of them I could use the twins map…"

"You Marauders overthink things," Tonks scoffed and held out her hand, her wand lying flat on the palm; "Point me: Severus Snape." The wand rose above her hand a few inches and spun around before stopping and shooting out a pale purple light. "I altered the spell a bit," she grinned at Sirius, "Makes it easier to follow, and the wand will shoot off sparks if we turn in the wrong direction. Ready?" Sirius nodded and they headed further into the old prison, following the purple light.

As the cell door exploded Remus rushed out first, followed quickly by Severus; there were four werewolves in the hallway, and the two wizards wasted no time in throwing some binding potions. This group was caught unaware and had no time to do anything but shout for help, so Severus and Remus made their way out of the hallway unscathed, but the startled yells alerted the rest of the werewolves to their escape. When they climbed the stairs to the next level a group of werewolves and a couple of Death Eaters were waiting for them; as Remus was in front he took the brunt of the attack and was knocked down.

Severus was a few steps behind Remus, so when he went down the potions master threw a blinding potion and the enemies surrounding them howled in pain as they clutched at their eyes; Severus took this opportunity to throw more of the body bind potions and then turned to help Remus, but the other man had already taken care of his two attackers, knocking them out cold.

"That was far too easy," Severus commented, "Your lip is bleeding."

"Yeah; one of them actually bit me," Remus shook his head, "Greyback has been encouraging them to embrace their inner wolf, and many of them still act like animals even when it isn't a full moon." He pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and dabbed at his lip, wincing a bit, and then put it away. "The ones we just fought are low in the pack; as we get to the upper floors we will come across the stronger wolves, and Greyback will most likely be the last one we encounter. Did you recognize the Death Eater's?"

"No," Severus shook his head, "I'm sure they are some of the low-level followers-new members; most high-level Death Eater's will not be at a werewolf compound unless ordered, and they would never stoop so low as to be stuck on guard duty with the wolves." He paused for a moment and then continued, "So, we use the simple spells and potions for now and save the more powerful ones for our stronger enemies. Ready?" Remus nodded and they made their way down the corridor as silently as possible, on the look-out for more enemies.

They made it up two more floors without encountering anyone, and Remus was beginning to get nervous. When they passed a small alcove Remus pulled Severus inside.

"They've set another trap for us," he murmured to Severus, "There should be sentries posted on every floor, especially since some of the wolves from before managed to yell out a warning…"

"Can you not sniff them out?" Severus inquired.

"No," Remus shook his head, "I can't smell anything actually; it's as if someone-"

"Dropped a potion to negate you sense of smell," Severus interrupted, "I created such a potion for the Dark Lord years ago; I had no idea he was still using it. Well, we can't stay here all day-we still need to get out there and find Harry."

"Right," Remus nodded, "Let me go first so-"

"Let her go you filthy Death Eater scum!" The sound of a familiar voice shouting interrupted what Remus was saying, and he and Severus exchanged a glance before Remus stuck his head out of the alcove; the scene before him made him growl low in the back of his throat until Severus yanked him back, casting a quick silencing spell.

"What is Black doing?" At Remus's incredulous look Severus rolled his eyes, "I can recognize his voice as well as you, Wolf. So?"

"Well, I would guess that Sirius came after us on a rescue mission," Remus replied, "Not sure exactly how he knew we were in trouble, but he brought Tonks with him, and she's being held at wand point by four Death Eater's, while roughly a half dozen werewolves have them surrounded."

"Stupid Mutt," Severus muttered, shaking his head, "Idiot. Well, I suppose we had better go save our rescuers." Remus nodded his agreement as Severus cancelled the silencing spell and they exited the alcove to join the fight.

"Draco, please," Harry pleaded as the blond trapped him against the wall, "I tried to get away from him; I told him to leave me alone! You have to believe me!"

"You were supposed to stay here and finish your homework," Draco replied, "What were you doing out there if not secretly meeting with Smith?"

"I went to the library to look up bonding rituals," Harry said, "I wanted some ideas for when we do the bonding ceremony; Smith showed up and I left, but he threw me against the wall!"

"And why did you not do as I said and return to our rooms afterwards?"

"Dumbledore wouldn't let me," Harry replied, "He said I had to go with him. He-he wanted to talk to me about you and about…about Voldemort." Harry gasped in pain when Draco backhanded him.

"I have told you before not to say his name," Draco growled, "You _do not_ speak his name, understand?"

"Y-yes Draco," Harry said, looking up at him with tear-filled eyes, "I'm sorry."

"What did Dumbledore say to you?" Draco demanded, "About me and the Dark Lord?"

"I-it was just more lies," Harry said quickly, looking down to avoid Draco's gaze; he had decided that maybe it would be best if he didn't repeat the headmaster's words to his fiancé, "He-he was saying pretty much the same thing as before, that you are using me and he said that you are…going to turn me over to Vo-I mean, You-Know-Who." Harry flinched when Draco raised his hand, but then he closed his eyes and sighed when the blond simply carded his fingers through Harry's hair.

"You're lying to me Pet," Harry gasped when Draco tightened his fingers in his thick locks and forced him to look up into grey eyes, "What did he really say to you Harry?" Draco's voice was low and threatening, and Harry trembled at the anger underlying the calmness.

"I told you," Harry forced his voice not to waver, "He said that you are using me and will turn me over to…Him."

"For shame Harry," Draco shook his head, "tsk"ing and raised his wand, "I suppose we shall have to do this the hard way; at least, it will not be pleasant for you." The blond pointed his wand at Harry's head and said a single word; "Leglimens." Harry gasped in pain as his mind was invaded; he struggled as Draco watched his meeting with Dumbledore, and then his meeting with Smith flashed before his eyes. When the spell was cancelled Harry slumped weakly against the wall with his eyes closed, and he would have fallen if not for Draco's bruising grip on his arms.

"So, now you know," Draco said thoughtfully, "I had thought to keep you in the dark for a bit longer, but that meddlesome old fool just couldn't leave well enough alone." Harry's eyes opened wide in disbelief as he stared at Draco.

"Y-you can't mean-it's not true?" Harry asked weakly, "You're not-this wasn't part of a plan to help-"

"The Dark Lord?" Draco supplied, "Well Harry, actually this was all part of His plan; Severus discovered that you are a horcrux, and the Dark Lord tasked me with keeping you alive, and under control. As a reward, I am to be his right hand when I graduate, and I get to keep you and do with you as I wish-provided it doesn't cause your death of course."

"No," Harry shook his head in denial, "It can't be true. What about-everything that we've been through? You helped me rescue Sirius!"

"Sirius? Sirius is dead," Draco told him, "What could ever possess you to believe that he is alive or that I would help you to rescue him? As for everything that happened this summer, it was all part of my plan to make you mine-and it worked." Harry continued to shake his head wordlessly. "Oh yes; now that you know, you have two choices Pet-you can make this easy for yourself and do as I say, or I can simply make you do as I say."

"What-why are you doing this?" Harry whispered, "I just-I don't understand."

"I am doing this because I can," Draco replied, "and for revenge. You rejected me in front of the Weasel-no one has ever turned me down before. You humiliated me in our first flying lesson and then you managed to get on the Quidditch team and get a new broom, and all of this was just in first year. What about third year, when you snuck into Hogsmeade so that you could throw mud in my face?" Harry was still shaking his head silently, and Draco cupped his face gently; "Oh yes, there are many things that you have yet to be punished for, but we will take care of that. I have a list you see, a list of all the wrongs you and your friends have committed against me; as their leader I feel it is only right for you to make atonement on their behalf. Before we go into the past however, we need to take care of that rebellious streak of yours; remove your clothing Harry." Draco stepped back and looked at Harry expectantly, but the brunet merely turned his head away, hands at his side.

"It is not wise to make me wait Pet," Draco said, "Do as I say, or face the consequences."

"I'll take the consequences," Harry replied, finally raising his eyes to meet Draco's steely gaze with his own angry one, "You lied to me, abused me and took advantage of me-I will never give you what you want again, and if I get the chance to break this bond then you can be sure I'll take it. You can't keep me away from Dumbledore forever; I've already had that proven to me, so this bond is merely temporary; do your worst-if Voldemort couldn't break me what makes you think you can?"

"Simple," Draco replied with a chilling smile as he pointed his wand at the other boy, "You never loved the Dark Lord. Last chance Pet; remove your clothes, or I will do it for you." Harry glared at the blond for a moment before lowering his eyes in submission and reaching up with trembling hands to undo the buttons on his shirt. "Very good," Draco said condescendingly, lowering his wand; once it was pointed away from him Harry lunged at the other boy, knocking him to the ground and slapping his wand out of his hand.

The wand rolled away and, rather than search for it, Harry turned and ran for the door; his own wand was locked away in the desk and he knew he would never get to it before Draco could catch him. When he got to the stairs leading away from the bedroom and down to their sitting room Harry took a chance and jumped over the banister; he hit the ground rolling and slammed into an end table, knocking it over, but was quickly back on his feet, ignoring his pained ankle and the angry shout from behind him. Harry limped to the door and actually had his hand on the knob when Draco caught up with him.

"Crucio!" Draco cast the curse and Harry screamed in pain, hitting his knees as he fell to the ground. Draco kept the curse on him for three or four minutes, leaving Harry breathless from the pain when he finally cancelled it. Draco casually walked over to the younger boy and knelt beside him; he grabbed a fistful of dark hair and yanked Harry's head back.

"That was very stupid," the Slytherin said conversationally, "You have only made things worse for yourself. Get up." The brunet whimpered as Draco pulled him to his feet by his hair; once he was standing Draco began dragging him across the room and up the staircase, shoving him roughly into the bedroom. By this time Harry had gotten his breath back and began struggling against Draco's hold.

"Let me go Malfoy!" He growled at the blond, "I swear I will-"

"You'll do what?" Draco mocked him, knocking him to the floor and kicking him in the side, "There's nothing you can do Potter; you are mine, and I can do anything I want. Now, stand up." Harry slowly got to his feet, one hand going to his bruised ribs.

The second he was on his feet, Harry rushed Draco again, but this time the blond was prepared and stepped out of the way, shoving Harry so that he fell into the desk; the blond stepped up behind him, grabbed him by his hair and smashed his face into the desk-once, twice, three times before Harry kicked back and managed to get him in the knee-cap, causing Draco to let go with a cry of pain. Harry, his vision blurry and his glasses hanging off one ear, grabbed a textbook off the desk and swung it as he spun around, catching Draco on the jaw and making him fall down. Harry took this opportunity to run again, but he didn't get far as Draco grabbed his ankle, pulling him to the ground as well.

"You won't escape that way Potter," Draco snarled, climbing on top of Harry and pinning the smaller boy; he grabbed both of Harry's wrists in one hand and pressed them to the floor then cast a spell to keep them there. "You really should stop testing my patience," Draco continued, getting to his feet and wiping a thin line of blood off his chin, "Well, I suppose it's a lesson you will just have to learn the hard way. Crucio!" Harry cried out and thrashed against the curse in his invisible bonds; this time Draco held it for several minutes until Harry just about passed out.

When the curse was lifted Harry felt light-headed and he only came back to awareness when he found himself being dropped on the bed; he tried to pull away but Draco's fist to the side of his face left his head spinning again and then he was being rolled onto his stomach.

"Please," Harry said weakly as Draco bound his hands to the headboard and then forced him to his knees, magic once again keeping him bound. The brunet shivered as he felt his clothes being vanished and then he felt Draco climb off the bed; he heard the blond walk to the other side of the room and began his struggles anew. "Don't do this;" Harry pleaded, "I-look, if I do what Dumbledore wants I have to die, and I don't want to die, so I will stop fighting you if you just-ah!" He cried out as he felt a harsh stinging on his ass.

"Don't bother trying to lie to me," Draco told him, "You may not want to die, but I know you Pet-you're noble and self-sacrificing and you would willingly walk to death if it would save everyone else. No worries though; by the time I am through with you, you will have a new found respect for myself, your life, and our Lord-for he is your Lord as well, and I am going to help you acknowledge that. First however-your punishment. You tried to escape from me twice, attacked me, and disobeyed me; this is in addition to speaking with Smith and Dumbledore. I also saw that little conversation you had with Blaise-I need to teach you a lesson about keeping secrets from me as well."

"Don't do this," Harry said, "Malfoy…Draco….I-"

"Silence Potter," Draco interrupted him, swinging the riding crop and making another mark on his back, "I am going to punish you, and when I'm done you will apologize."

Harry received no other warning before Draco brought the crop down again…and again…and again. Soon Harry was writhing in his bonds, crying out at the harsh sting and begging for it to stop. He could feel the tears streaming down his face, and his throat was raw from screaming. Harry sagged in relief when the lashes stopped, but it was short-lived.

"I am waiting for my apology Potter," Draco said, and Harry took a deep breath before replying shakily;

"Go fuck yourself," he said.

"Wrong answer Pet," Draco replied, "Seems you require some more punishment to see the error of your ways, and you also need to do something productive with that filthy mouth of yours. Wait right there Pet." Harry continued struggling in his bonds until he heard Draco return-with someone else.

"D-Draco? Who did you bring with you?"

"Don't you worry about that," Draco replied, "It's just someone to help out with your punishment. Now, I am going to release your bonds and you will scoot back on the bed; if you try to fight me again…well, let's just say it would not be advisable, understand?"

"Yes," Harry said quietly, and when he felt his bonds release he obediently scooted to the edge of the bed until his feet touched the footboard, and then he was once again bound with magic, his hands stuck to the blanket.

"Good Pet," Draco climbed on the bed and ran his fingers threw Harry's dark locks, pulling his head back and Harry was met with the sight of Draco's erection; "Now, it's time to put that dirty little mouth of yours to work. Suck, Slut." Harry wanted to fight, to refuse, but he had no choice, so he reluctantly opened his mouth and got to work licking and sucking at the other boys hardened member; Harry closed his eyes and focused on his task, determined to finish this as quickly as possible, so he was startled when Draco said "Now." Seconds later he felt a harsh sting on his already sore backside and cried out, making Draco moan above him. These stings were worse than the previous lashes, and a moment later he found out why.

"Are you enjoying it Pet?" Draco asked, "It's a special whip called a cat o'nine tails; it has nine tails, as you can imagine, and each one has a tiny barbed tip."

As Draco spoke the whip came down again, and Harry imagined that he could feel each individual barb. The lashes came down evenly spaced, timed just right so that the next lash fell just as the pain was fading from the previous and Harry continued to cry out and whimper around Draco's cock as the blond took control, thrusting into his mouth.

Just when Harry thought he couldn't take it anymore, Draco tensed and came in his mouth, shooting his load down the brunet's throat and forcing him to swallow as the lashes continued to fall.

"Enough," Draco said as he pulled away, and the blows finally stopped, "Now Pet, what do you say?" Harry hung his head in defeat; he was helpless, trapped and had no choice but to do as Draco wanted.

"I-I'm sorry for how I acted before," Harry said quietly, and then collapsed on the bed as his bonds were released.

"I know you are Pet," Draco said soothingly as he ran gentle hands over Harry back and ass; even the gentlest of touches was torture at the moment however, and Harry bit his lip to stop himself from whimpering. "Now, I am going to take a shower; if you promise to behave I won't tie you up."

"I promise," Harry said, and gave a sigh of relief when Draco climbed off the bed and he heard the bathroom door close. Harry waited a few minutes to make sure Draco wouldn't be coming back out, and then he got out of the bed; he found his glasses by nearly stepping on them, and then, moving slowly and wincing with every step, he limped over to the wardrobe and grabbed a robe. Once he had the robe on he looked longingly at the desk where he knew his wand was, but he knew it would be useless to try and get around Draco's wards, so instead he headed for the staircase and slowly made his way downstairs. Once there he saw Theo lying on the couch, apparently asleep and he blushed as he realized the brunet Slytherin had been the one to assist Draco with his punishment. Harry glared at the sleeping boy for a moment, and then he continued on to the door; he silently opened it and stepped out into an empty hallway. Harry slowly and painfully made his way down the corridor towards Dumbledore's office; he was nearly to the Great Hall when he heard a shout behind him.

"Potter!" Harry looked over his shoulder with wide eyes and saw the blond coming after him, wand raised threateningly; "You get your ass back over here now!"

"Never Malfoy!" Harry yelled back, forcing himself to run up the nearby staircase; Dumbledore's office was close by, if he could only make it there.

"Oh no you don't Potter!" Draco shouted, and Harry cried out as he was hit with a stinging hex, causing him to step through the trick step and fall back down the staircase; when he stopped rolling he shook his head and tried to stand up, only to find that his right ankle-the one he had hurt earlier when jumped the staircase in his room-wouldn't support his weight.

"You just never learn, do you?" Draco shook his head as he approached the fallen boy, "Why must you make things so hard for yourself Pet? You know you can't win, and now I just have to punish you again. Stop lying there and looking so pathetic; get up." Harry was feeling light-headed, but with Draco's wand pointed at him he struggled to his knees, swaying slightly as his vision blurred. "Perhaps a public lesson will stick better, hmm?" Harry focused on Draco's voice and the last thing he saw was Draco, his silver hair shining in the torchlight and the familiar Hawthorne wand aimed directly at him as his world went dark…

Draco held onto Fawkes tail feathers tightly as he felt himself surrounded by warm flames; moments later he found himself in an apparently empty house.

"What is this place Fawkes? Why did you bring me here?" Draco inquired, wrinkling his nose at the dusty, charred smell of the room he was in. He was standing in the center of a living room, the faded furniture was once dark blue but had faded to grey, and there were scorch marks everywhere. Fawkes flew over to the fireplace and trilled, nudging a picture frame with his beak. Intrigued Draco walked over and picked up the picture; the glass was covered in soot, but once he wiped it away he saw that it was a family portrait of a man with unruly black hair and glasses, a woman with auburn hair and familiar green eyes, and a black-haired, green-eyed baby happily pulling on the fur of a big black dog. The man and woman waved at him cheerfully and the dog gave a soundless bark as the baby giggled.

"Harry," Draco whispered, looking around with narrowed eyes, "This is the Potter's old house; is Harry here?" He shrank the picture and placed in in his pocket as Fawkes trilled again and flew over to the staircase where Draco saw even more scorch marks and the outline of a body; this, he knew, must be where James Potter had died. Draco pushed the thought from his mind and made his way carefully up the stairs, wand drawn and lit so that he could see his way. At the top of the stairs he saw a dusty but un-damaged hallway to the left, and more destruction to the right; he went to the right, headed for a half-open door. When he reached the door he gently pushed it open to reveal what was once a nursery and there, lying on the floor was-

"Harry!" Draco cried out softly as he ran to the fallen boy; Harry's glasses were hanging from one ear and his face was wet with tears, but he still clutched his Firebolt in one hand, and his breathing was even, which went a long way to soothing Draco's mind. The brunet looked to be having some sort of nightmare as he whimpered and flinched, and then he spoke.

"Draco-no!" the unconscious boy pleaded, "Please don't! I'm sorry…yours, always yours…stop!" Draco had been about to reach out and soothe his fiancé, however at Harry's words he hesitated; what if Dumbledore had actually managed to convince Harry that Draco was evil? Waking him now might cause the smaller boy to panic, and Draco would never get him to safety. Except…Draco bit his lip uncertainly and then gently took Harry's wand out of his back pocket and placed it in his own pocket; now he could wake Harry from his nightmare, and if the brunet panicked Draco would be able to send him into an enchanted sleep until they could return to Hogwarts.

His mind made up, Draco reached out and placed a hand on the other boy's shoulder, shaking him gently; he frowned when he got now response-perhaps the potion was keeping him unconscious? If so there was a charm Draco could use to wake him, but it might cause the brunet to be disoriented…After thinking for several minutes Draco made up his mind and pointed his wand at Harry.

"Enervate," he said softly, and watched as Harry sat up suddenly before falling back down and slowly opening his eyes; the Gryffindor looked extremely young and vulnerable as he lay there blinking, and Draco gently reached over to adjust his glasses. Harry frowned in confusion as he struggled to sit up; he looked around the room, taking in his surroundings, barely sparing Draco a glance. After a few seconds Harry's confusion seemed to lift as he turned back to face the blond; hopeful grey eyes locked with wide green eyes and Draco held his breath as he waited to see what Harry's reaction would be…

**AN: Okay, first off I'm alive; sorry it's been so long since my last update, but life interfered, and then I had the hardest time writing the first part of this chapter; the Sirius/Tonks and Remus/Severus scene just did not want to be written, so I did that part the best I could, but I am really no good at writing fight scenes. Well, the nightmare is finally over for Harry-no more torture from Draco, and in the next chapter we will see how it affected him and also see the resolution of Siri/Tonks/Sev/Remy's situation. In addition, our boys will get the chance to confront Dumbles and-well, you'll just have to wait and see on that. I will try to get another chapter up soon, and until then please keep those reviews coming! Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter; I love hearing what you have to say. Until next time!**


	30. Chapter 29

_Harry sat up suddenly before falling back down and slowly opening his eyes; the Gryffindor looked extremely young and vulnerable as he lay there blinking, and Draco gently reached over to adjust his glasses. Harry frowned in confusion as he struggled to sit up; he looked around the room, taking in his surroundings, barely sparing Draco a glance. After a few seconds Harry's confusion seemed to lift as he turned back to face the blond; hopeful grey eyes locked with wide green eyes and Draco held his breath as he waited to see what Harry's reaction would be…_

"D-Draco?" Harry said questioningly, "Wh-what did you do to me? Where are we?"

"Harry," Draco smiled softly, "You don't know how glad I am to see you; I've been looking for you ever since you vanished from Quidditch practice earlier today-how are you feeling?"

"Wha-? Today?" Harry frowned, "No; it's been four days since I got hurt during practice." He glared up at the Slytherin and began scooting back slowly, "What are you playing at Malfoy? It's bad enough you've been torturing me, but now you're trying to make me think I've lost my mind? Get away from me!"

"Please Harry, just listen to me," Draco pleaded, remaining still even as he watched Harry back away until he was sitting against the far wall, "It really has only been a few hours-even though it felt like a lifetime-and your friends have been helping me look for you. Do you remember the contraceptive potion Madame Pomfrey gave you?" Harry nodded, still frowning; "It wasn't supposed to be mixed with anything else for twenty-four hours, but Dumbledore had Zacharias Smith disguise himself as Luna and give you another potion. Do you remember drinking anything during practice?"

"Yes," Harry replied hesitantly, "I-I saw Luna sitting in the stands and I went to talk to her; she-she gave me some juice and…she warned me to watch out for cinnadoms." He bit his lip and shook his head, "But that makes no sense even for Luna, because she told me before that cinnadoms can't fly. I-I was on my broom again when I realized this, and then I felt dizzy and…that's when I woke up in the hospital wing with Smith sitting by my bed; he and Dumbledore told me you were using me, and when we got back to our rooms, you…you punished me." The memories came back and Harry started feeling around for his wand, before he remembered that it was locked in the desk in their room.

"No," Draco shook his head, "The person who gave you that drink was an imposter-it was Zacharias Smith. Weasley said that you started to fall off your broom and then you vanished, and we've been looking for you ever since. The potion Smith gave you was to make you believe anything he and Dumbledore said, but they didn't realize the potion would knock you out; Dumbledore sent Severus and Remus to look for you, but Mother spoke to McGonagall, and found out that Sev and Remus were sent into a trap, so Sirius and Tonks went to go rescue them. Then Fawkes came and he brought me to you."

"Fawkes?" Harry looked up and the phoenix made a cheerful melody as he flew down to sit next to the brunet; "Hello Fawkes," Harry said softly as he pet the magical bird; "If you brought Draco here then that means he's telling the truth, but…he hurt me so much over the past few days…" Harry buried his face in his hands, shaking his head in confusion; "How do I know what's real?"

"Well, first off here's your wand," Harry looked up as the blond tossed it to him; "I only took it to make sure you didn't attack me when I woke you up. Also…" Draco shook his head helplessly, "I don't know how else I can convince you to believe me Lion; I love you and I would never hurt you. I promise you this; when we get back to school Dumbledore, Smith and anyone else who helped with this insane plan will pay."

"You-you called me Lion," Harry said softly, "You weren't calling me that before…" He looked up at Draco, green eyes glistening with unshed tears; "I want to believe you, but…I just don't know. Even if it was all in my mind it still felt real to me; I can still feel the bruises and…" he trailed off, shaking his head in confusion.

"We need Sev," Draco said, "I know he has to have a potion that could help us…" the blond looked over to where Harry was still petting Fawkes and smiled as an idea came to him; "Of course! Dobby!" Draco's shout made Harry jump, and seconds later the little house elf appeared, squealing happily when he saw Harry sitting by the far wall.

"Harry Potter sir is alive!" Dobby squeaked, "Oh, Dobby is being so happy! Is needing to tell Winky! Master Draco is finding Harry Potter sir! Master Draco is good wizard! How is Dobby helping Master Draco?"

"I need you to go to Professor Snape's office and fetch me the Veritas Memoria potion," Draco commanded, "We need it immediately."

"Yes sir!" Dobby bowed, "Dobby is going now!" He was gone with a pop, and Draco noticed Harry eying him warily.

"It's a "truthful memory" potion," Draco explained, "Very rare as it requires fresh phoenix tears to work."

"Oh," Harry said softly, nodding his understanding, "So this will help me see which memories are true and which are false?"

"Yes," Draco confirmed, "the potion will show you what your mind thinks happened, and then it will show you what truly happened; you'll be able to see the difference between your true memories and your…I suppose you would say nightmares." Harry nodded at the explanation but made no reply, instead he looked around the room curiously.

The room was cozy; the walls had an enchanted forest mural on them complete with dragons which moved haltingly since the magic had begun to wear off long ago; the furniture consisted of a crib, a changing station, a rocking chair, as well as three bookcases filled with children's books and stuffed animals, and a wardrobe in the far corner-all of it was made of dark chestnut. The curtains and bedclothes were dark blue, and Harry could see the corner of a red blanket in the crib, with something gold stitched on it. The furniture looked to be in good condition, but most of it was knocked over, and some of the toys and books were also scatted on the floor.

"Where are we?" Harry asked with a sense of trepidation.

"I believe we are in Godric's Hollow," Draco replied hesitantly, "I saw a picture on the mantelpiece downstairs, and…well, we are currently sitting in the nursery-your old room."

"This is where my Mum died," Harry said softly, tears shining in his emerald eyes as he looked around again; looking up he saw that the roof was gone, but there was a slight shimmer above the house.

"It's a ward," Draco said, answering Harry's silent question; "The damage from the backlash of the Dark-Voldemort's curse made it impossible to repair the roof, so the ministry at the time placed a ward above the house to protect it from weather damage; the house was left exactly the same as the day that he vanished as a memorial to your parents sacrifice and what the wizarding world saw as your victory over Voldemort."

"Oh," Harry stood up and walked over to the crib, keeping a careful eye on Draco the entire time, "I never knew…Dumbledore never told me about this; neither did Remus or Sirius…why did no one ever tell me?" He knelt by the crib and gently picked up the baby blanket; it was indeed a bright, Gryffindor red, and the gold he saw on it was a golden snitch-the wings fluttered faintly as it moved slowly across the material.

"I had one similar to that," Draco told him, "It was green and silver though; the snitch probably used to move around on the blanket-I remember I used to spend hours trying to catch it when I was younger, and whenever I succeeded the snitch would glow." Harry tilted his head and covered the snitch with one hand-sure enough it began to glow, faintly, but still.

"This was here all this time and no one ever told me," Harry said again as he carefully folded the blanket and shrank it so that it would fit in his pocket; he then walked over to the stuffed animals and smiled sadly as he came across a wolf, a black dog, a rat and a stag; "All these memories-everything here is mine and Dumbledore kept it from me. Merlin-I hate him!"

"Don't worry Lion," Draco said softly, "He'll get his in the end-I guarantee it. I wonder what is taking Dobby so long…Dobby!"

"Dobby has failed!" Dobby wailed as he reappeared; "He is trying to get potion masters be needing, but Master Snape is making it so house elves is not getting potions!" He wrung his ears in agitation, "Dobby is needing punished!"

"No," Draco said sternly, "It was not your fault; Severus must have gotten tired of people stealing his potions and ingredients and changed the wards; we'll have to wait for him to return before we can get that potion. In the meantime, we should head back to the school; everyone is really worried about you, and Madame Pomfrey will want to check you over."

Harry looked over at Draco startled; the blond was only standing a few feet away and had his hand extended to help the brunet up. Harry stared at the hand for a moment, thinking; over the past several minutes he and Draco had been talking and he felt comfortable, safe-all the anxiety he had felt upon waking had melted away, but it was slowly coming back.

"I'm just going to open a portal into the school," Draco explained, "It will open to our rooms, where Mother, Hermione and Ron should be waiting; Luna will most likely be there too."

"Okay," Harry said, pushing aside his reservations and accepting Draco's help in standing; once he was on his feet he quickly dropped his fiancé's hand and then looked back down at the stuffed animals, considering taking them with him.

"Why don't you have Dobby take them back to our rooms for you?" Draco suggested, "We can come back here later-maybe next weekend-so that you can look through the house some more and see if there's anything else you want." Harry nodded, offering Draco a small smile before turning to address the house elf.

"Dobby, can you take these stuffed animals back to our rooms for me? Just the wolf, the dog and the stag."

"Yes sir, Master Harry Potter!" Dobby squeaked, "Can Dobby be doing anything else for masters?"

"Er-that's all for now," Harry said, and watched as Dobby eagerly picked up the stuffed animals and vanished. Fawkes gave a trill of satisfaction and flew over to land on Harry's shoulder, startling the brunet who had forgotten about the phoenix. The firebird's comforting weight on his shoulder reassured Harry and he looked over at Draco, "Okay; I'm ready to go."

"Very well," Draco nodded, walking over to the bedroom door and closing it so that he could turn it into a portal; he opened the door and gestured for Harry to go through first. As soon as he passed through the doorway Fawkes vanished and Harry was greeted by loud squealing and found himself caught up in a suffocating hug with a face full of bushy hair.

"Oh my God Harry!" Hermione cried, squeezing him tightly, "You're okay! We were so worried! Are you okay? What did they do to you? Are you hurt? Where have you been?"

"Hermione! Let him breath!" Harry heard Ron's familiar voice and gave him a grateful smile as Hermione released him and he gasped in a few mouthfuls of air; "I'm glad you're back Mate;" Ron grinned, "Had everyone in a right state, you did. Where was he Draco?" Harry turned and looked at Draco, who had been talking quietly with Narcissa on the couch.

"He was in the old Potter home in Godric's Hollow," Draco replied, "Although I'm not sure how he got there…"

"Perhaps his bonding ring activated when he was in danger?" Hermione suggested.

"No; it would have brought him back to the realm," Narcissa said; she stood up and approached Harry, enfolding him in a gentle hug; "It is good to see you have returned safely; are you alright Harry dear?"

"I-I'm fine Narcissa," Harry blushed as he returned the hug briefly, "Although…my ribs do hurt a bit."

"It was the amulet," Luna's dreamy voice distracted everyone as they looked over to the corner where the blond girl was standing on her head; "It was blessed with protection charms by the Rowan Fairy's."

"What are you talking about?" Hermione demanded irritably, "Rowan Fairy's? Really Luna? Can't you be serious for even a moment?"

"Actually, Rowan Fairy's live in our realm," Narcissa corrected Hermione, frowning at her for making fun of Luna; "We have many different types of fairy's, and Rowan Fairies are known for their protective magic. Harry, are you wearing an amulet?"

"I have the one that Draco gave me for my birthday," Harry replied, pulling the amulet out of his shirt, "I wear it most of the time." Narcissa smiled at him.

"Ah yes; that amulet does have numerous protection charms on it," she said, "I would not be surprised to find that one feature of the amulet would be to bring its wearer to a safe place when they are in danger. Now, we should get to the hospital wing; the rest of your friends are waiting there, and I am certain the headmaster will be coming to find you soon."

"I feel fine," Harry protested, "Can't I just…" he trailed off as he realized he didn't really want to stay in the room until he could be sure of which memories were true; "Fine; let's get this over with." He led the way out of the room, and everyone noticed the way he avoided Draco, linking arms with Luna instead.

"What's wrong with Harry?" Hermione whispered as she and Ron dropped back to walk with Draco and Narcissa, "Did the two of you have a fight?"

"No," Draco replied quietly, "Dumbledore and Smith trapped him in a nightmare where I-I abused him; he says he does not know what is real, and so he does not trust me right now. We need Sev to come back so we can use the _Veritas Memoria _potion; that is, if Fawkes returns."

"There are other ways for him to verify his memories," Narcissa assured her son, "After Madam Pomfrey checks him over we can work on that; don't worry Darling-Harry won't avoid you forever." Draco nodded, and they continued the rest of the way to the hospital wing in silence.

"There you are!" Madam Pomfrey exclaimed as Harry and Luna entered the hospital wing, the rest of the small group close behind, "You had everyone worried about you young man! Why, there were six other students waiting in here, including the Weasley twins."

"Really?" Harry looked around curiously, seeing an empty hospital wing, "Where are they?"

"I'm afraid I sent them back to their dorms," Harry spun around quickly and saw a smiling Dumbledore standing by Pomfrey's office with Zacharias Smith; "I saw no reason for them to be here in Madam Pomfrey's way, and the twins I had escorted off school property as they are no longer students and did not have permission to be here. Now, I really must have a word with you Harry, and then Madam Pomfrey can check you over to make sure you are alright."

"No," Draco glared at the headmaster, "You have already done enough damage; Harry needs to be healed, and his health is more important than anything you have to say to him. I'm sure Madam Pomfrey agrees, as it was a part of her vows to become a medi-witch; the patient's health must always come first."

"It will only take a moment," Dumbledore insisted, "and it really isn't up to you Mr. Malfoy; it is Harry's decision to make. Come along Harry." He gestured for Harry to join him in the office, and the brunet looked between the headmaster and Draco; he didn't feel like he was injured too badly-his ankle didn't even hurt anymore-and it couldn't hurt to just hear what Dumbledore had to say…

"No, Harry!" Hermione placed a hand on his arm, having read the look on his face correctly, "I know that you aren't sure what's real right now, but why would Dumbledore be insisting that he speak to you before Madam Pomfrey heals you? Please Harry, just let her make sure you are okay, and then you can speak to Dumbledore." Harry nodded and turned to the medi-witch, but he paused when Zacharias spoke.

"Harry…please," the blond Hufflepuff said softly, "We really need to speak to you; it's important." Harry turned to look at him, watching warily as the other boy approached, "Don't you remember everything that has happened? Professor Dumbledore can free you from this unwanted bond, but it needs to be done now; any delay and it will be permanent."

"You idiot," Draco scowled, "The bond is already permanent; we each signed the contract in blood and we exchanged vows in front of…everyone at my mother's party. Our engagement has been approved by both my mother and Harry's godfather, and to break the bond would kill us both."

"What rubbish," Dumbledore said irritably, "Sirius Black is dead; he could not approve of anything, and I am certain Harry's aunt and uncle would not approve of this union. In fact, you have not visited your relative's since the day Mr. Malfoy kidnapped you from their house; I believe it would be beneficial for you to spend the Christmas Holidays with them."

"No!" Harry protested, stepping away from Zacharias and shaking his head in protest, "I can't go back-I won't!"

"That is enough!" Pomfrey interrupted; she had been standing aside quietly, but seeing Harry get so upset caused her to intercede; "I'm sorry Albus, but I am afraid you will have to wait to speak with Mr. Potter; I need to examine him now. Come along Harry." She placed a firm hand on Harry's shoulder and directed him over to a bed, drawing the curtains closed so that they would have some privacy.

"Now then, I thought I told you not to drink any more potions for one full day," Pomfrey gave him a stern look as she gestured for him to sit down on the bed.

"I didn't realize it was a potion!" Harry protested as he sat on the hospital bed, "I was given what I thought was some juice, and then I just suddenly started feeling dizzy and I passed out."

"Hmm," Pomfrey said absently as she cast a diagnostic spell on him, "and who gave you this juice?"

"I thought it was Luna, but now I think someone was using polyjuice potion," Harry replied, "I really don't feel that bad Madam Pomfrey."

"Yes, well your magic levels are very low," the nurse responded, "I'd say you need to let your magic rest until classes start tomorrow, otherwise you could collapse during class."

"Why would my magic be low?" Harry asked, "I haven't been using a lot of magic lately."

"Well, perhaps the potion you drank earlier today had something to do with it," Madam Pomfrey replied, casting another charm to detect any potions in his system, "Hmmm, yes; there is a potion in your system that I am unfamiliar with, however it reacted poorly with the contraceptive potion and has been slowly draining your magic. In fact…" The medi-witch trailed off as she cast another spell, and then frowned; Harry frowned too, as he saw a faint light streaming away from his body.

"What's that?"

"Your magic," Pomfrey replied, "It seems that someone has been using the potion to drain your magic, if we follow the trail we can see who it is. This is very illegal Harry, and I'm afraid it is very likely that one of your friends-or even Mr. Malfoy-may wind up being sent to Azkaban for this."

"I-I need to know," Harry said, "Whoever is doing this-I can't trust them. And Draco-after the past few days, I just don't know what to think anymore; but…you said that it was just this morning that I took that potion?"

"Yes," Pomfrey confirmed, "When taken incorrectly it can cause the person drinking it to be trapped in a nightmare that seems to last days, or even months if no one wakes them up. Anything that you recall happening after Quidditch practice was most likely part of a forced-hallucination."

"Oh," Harry said softly, "That means Draco didn't really…but I still need to know." Harry nodded decisively and hopped down from the bed; before Pomfrey could stop him he wrenched the curtains open-and they both gasped when they saw the pale trail of his magic leading to Dumbledore.

"Oh good-Harry is in good health I expect?" Dumbledore said cheerfully, "Then it is time he and I had a little chat; in here please Harry."

"Albus, how could you?" Madam Pomfrey demanded, her voice shaking, "Stealing magic-and from a student!" She glared at the headmaster and cast a charm so that everyone could see the trail of magic seeping out of Harry and into the headmaster.

"You had no authority to cast such a spell," Dumbledore replied icily, "Such magic should not be used on a patient without my express permission; what I do is for all of us-for the Greater Good-and you do not have the right to question me or my motives. Now, Poppy, I need you to lock the doors so that I can correct this little mistake you have made."

"I will do no such thing!" Pomfrey said indignantly, casting a quick body-bind at the headmaster; Dumbledore wasn't expecting it, so he was caught unawares, "My oath to my patients comes first, and I will not stand by and allow you to take advantage of Mr. Potter in such a way; I am going to contact the minister." She pointed her wand at the connection between Harry and Dumbledore; "Finite Incantum. You just sit down and rest Harry dear. Narcissa-I trust you to make sure no one enters or leaves the hospital wing while I am in my office."

"Of course," Narcissa bowed her head, icy-blue eyes narrowed at Dumbledore, "Do you happen to have a pensieve we can use?"

"In the cupboard over there," Pomfrey nodded to a plain wooden cupboard against the far wall; "The ward prevents anyone under the age of eighteen from opening the doors, however you should have no problem opening it. The body-bind won't last very long, so you should re-cast it every few moments to make sure he doesn't break free; we will allow the minister to deal with him. As for you, Mr. Smith-you just sit over there-"she pointed at a chair outside her office, "and don't move until I return." Having issued her orders Madam Pomfrey entered her office and closed the door behind her.

"I can't believe Dumbledore did that," Harry said, "How could he?"

"Are you okay Harry?" Draco demanded, "Did Pomfrey say how long he's been draining your magic?"

"I feel fine," Harry replied, "and no, she didn't say. It's-this whole thing is crazy! Where did Luna go?"

"She went to tell Neville and the others that you are safe," Hermione replied, taking Harry by the arm and directing him over to a bed, "If you don't come to supper then we have plans to meet afterwards. Ron left too; he went to contact the twins and let them know Draco found you." Harry nodded his understanding and allowed his friend to make him sit down.

"Why are you getting a pensieve?" he asked Narcissa, watching as she opened the cabinet and brought out a simple stone bowl.

"A pensieve will allow you to review your memories and see the difference between what truly happened and what that potion caused you to believe happened," Narcissa replied as she handed him the pensieve, "Now, first think of something that you know happened, beyond the shadow of a doubt." Harry frowned and closed his eyes as he thought, and settled on the memory of defeating the troll in first year; he concentrated and then opened his eyes to watch as he placed the silver strand of memory into the pensieve. While he was doing this, Narcissa took a moment to renew the body-bind on the head master.

"Good," Narcissa gave Harry a warm smile, "Now concentrate on your memories of today, starting with when you returned to the castle this morning and ending with Madam Pomfrey walking into her office."

"Okay," Harry agreed, once again closing his eyes as he concentrated on the memory; this one was much longer, and he had a slight headache when he finally placed it into the pensieve to view.

"Here," Draco was ready with a headache potion, which Harry recognized by the color and he drank it down gratefully.

"Thanks," he offered Draco a small smile before ducking his head and saying softly, "I-I don't really want everyone to see what happened; it's pretty bad and…"

"I'd like to view it with you," Draco said just as softly, "I need to know what happened, what Dumbledore made you believe I did to you."

"And you may need someone to point out the differences between a real memory and the false ones," Hermione added, "If-if it was really as bad as you say then you may get too caught up in the memory to tell what's true and what isn't."

"Okay," Harry agreed reluctantly, "but only if he swears a Wizards Oath to not tell anyone about what he sees without my permission."

"Very well," Draco nodded, holding his wand aloft, "I, Draco Malfoy, swear upon my magic not to reveal any details of Harry Potter's memories without his permission." Draco's wand emitted a golden spark that sealed the promise.

"Good; why don't the two of you make yourselves comfortable on the bed?" Narcissa suggested, "I can set up a ward so that you will not be disturbed, and Miss Granger and I can keep an eye on Dumbledore." Everyone agreed to this, and Draco wasted no time in climbing up beside Harry on the bed, although he was careful not to touch him as Harry still seemed wary of him.

"You go first Lion," Draco said, "I'll be right behind you." Harry nodded his agreement, and leaned over the pensieve until his nose touched the silvery substance inside; a few seconds later Draco followed suit and Narcissa immediately erected a protective circle around the bed.

"I have never seen that particular magic used before," Hermione noted interestedly, "Is it something taught at Hogwarts?"

"No," Narcissa shook her head, "Well, protection circles are generally taught during seventh year; this one, however, uses Fae magic and would therefore be useless to most of the students here. This also makes it less likely that someone will be able to break through the wards and interrupt Harry and Draco."

"Is there something similar you could use for the head master?" Hermione asked eagerly, "If Fae magic is useless to wizards without any Fae blood, then he shouldn't be able to escape from that, right?"

"I should have thought of that myself," Narcissa replied, re-casting the binding spell once again, "It takes a bit more time, however I believe it would be worth it. I need you to keep an eye on things and make sure I am not interrupted until I complete the circle; I am not certain exactly how long this will take, so make sure you cast the binding spell on Dumbledore again every few moments."

"Okay," Hermione agreed, excited to see Fae magic at work. Narcissa smiled at her and then closed her eyes as she began to slowly walk a circle around Dumbledore, chanting softly in a language Hermione had never heard before.

It was several minutes before Narcissa finished; during that time Madame Pomfrey had returned from her office-she said that the minister was in a meeting with the Muggle Prime Minister and would be there as soon as possible-and Hermione re-cast the binding spell three times. The medi-witch was slightly upset about foreign magic being used in her infirmary, but she had to agree with Hermione's reasoning when the younger witch explained that it would be more secure as Dumbledore-to their knowledge-did not have any Fae powers. When Narcissa finally completed the binding circle-it glowed a faint blue and the headmaster was encased in what appeared to be ice, although Narcissa explained that it was a substance to restrict his magic-she was pale and shaky, and Madame Pomfrey wasted no time in getting her seated on a bed with a glass of water as she cast several diagnostic spells to make sure that Narcissa was okay.

"I am fine Poppy," Narcissa said, "Just a little tired; it is hard to draw on Fae magic in the wizarding world, and even more so inside Hogwarts due to all the wards around the school. How long until the minister is here?"

"He said he will be here as soon as he possibly can," Pomfrey replied, "He is currently with the Muggle Prime Minister, trying to come up with safety plans for the Muggles; over the weekend You-Know-Who attacked a small town outside of London-there were six families living there that consisted of one Muggle parent and one magical parent, and he killed them all except for children under the age of eight."

"What did he do with the children?" Hermione asked fearfully.

"He-he took them," the nurse replied, "No one knows where, but they think he is either planning to torture them or place them with loyal Death Eaters and train them to follow his views."

"That's terrible!" Hermione cried; Narcissa remained quiet, but the stricken look in her pale blue eyes spoke volumes; "Someone has to go after them! The aurors-they're looking for them, right?"

"I don't know," Pomfrey said sadly, "There hasn't been any more news, and Dumbledore wanted the information kept quiet until tomorrow; he said that he needed to speak to Harry alone before someone else could tell him of the attack and make him feel responsible for it."

"He did not tell Harry though," Narcissa pointed out, "Harry was in his office earlier today-that would have been the perfect opportunity to tell him…" She trailed off thoughtfully and then shook her head; "I have no idea what he has planned, however I am certain that he intends for Harry to feel guilty about the…the attacks; he may have wanted to goad him into retaliating, although I cannot see how he would profit from that…"

"Well, when the minister gets here and arrests him maybe they'll use veritaserum," Hermione suggested, "Then we can find out all of his plans." As she spoke there was a loud commotion in Madame Pomfrey's office, and moments later Rufus Scrimgeour stepped into the room followed by a team of eight aurors; there was a flash of satisfaction in his eyes when he saw Dumbledore captured, and then he turned and bowed to the three witches in the room.

"Mrs. Malfoy, Madame Pomfrey," He said cordially, and then offered a tight smile to Hermione Granger, "And you must be Hermione Granger; you ladies did a fine job capturing Albus Dumbledore, but what are Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy doing?"

"It's a type of therapy," Madame Pomfrey replied, "Dumbledore has put Harry through quite an ordeal the past few hours, and having Mr. Malfoy view the memories with him is a way to help him heal."

"Yes, we need to know exactly what happened here," the minister said, "Normally Kinglsey Shacklebot would take your statements, however since he and the headmaster were close I asked Madame Bones to be here instead. Amelia?" Madam Bones stepped out of the office with a solemn expression on her face and nodded to the people assembled in the room.

"I am ready to begin Minister," she said, taking a seat in a chair beside one of the hospital beds, "Who would like to begin?"

"Ron should really be here," Hermione said fretfully, "as he was the one to see Harry vanish earlier, but I suppose I can tell you what he told me, and then you can speak to him later?"

"That would be acceptable," Madam Bones agreed, "Please proceed; begin by stating your full name."

Over the next hour or so, Hermione, Madame Pomfrey and Narcissa took turns describing what had happened, and Madam Bones' face became even grimmer, while the minister had a gleam of satisfaction in his eyes.

"Well, we really need Mr. Potter's testimony," the minister said once the three witches had finished telling them what happened. At that moment, there was a bright flash of light, and when it cleared they could see Albus Dumbledore looking at them triumphantly, free of Narcissa's binding circle; one wordless spell later he had every wand in the room in his hand, and he quickly pocketed them.

"I am afraid that won't be possible," the headmaster said cheerfully, "When I get finished, no one in this room will remember any of the events of the past few days. Now, where to begin?" He held his wand aloft thoughtfully for a moment before finally taking aim, "Yes, I believe I shall take care of you first…" Before he could cast a spell however, there was a loud cry and a flash of fire…

**AN: So, no real confrontation between Harry and Dumbles, but he has to take care of himself first. This chapter would have been out sooner, but I had a hard time finding a good place to stop…still didn't really find one, but I really wanted to get this out. Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and thanks for sticking with me throughout these long lulls in between chapters; it really makes me smile to see the reviews ^_^ **


	31. Chapter 30

Harry leaned forward until his nose touched the silvery substance of his memories and then…

"_Hermione!" Harry said, grabbing Ron's arm to stop him from following the other Gryffindor's back to their tower; "She's in the bathroom, and she doesn't know about the troll!" The look on Ron's face was conflicted; he was obviously terrified at the thought of running into a troll, but…_

"_We can't let Percy see us," He told Harry, and the two boys ran down the hall only to see the troll going through a doorway and out of sight._

"Ah, the troll in first year," Harry looked over to his left and saw Draco standing there; "Why this memory?"

"Just watch," Harry replied.

_Harry and Ron ran towards the door quietly and closed it, quickly turning the key in the lock and trapping the troll inside._

"_We just caught the troll!" Ron cheered, "McGonagall will be sure to give us loads of points for this!" Harry grinned back happily, but before he could reply a loud scream split the air, and both their faces drained of color._

"_You don't think that was-" Ron began._

"_Hermione," Harry confirmed, "We just locked the troll in there with her! We have to go save her!" The boys ran back to the bathroom and opened the door; at first all they could see was the troll, but then they caught sight of Hermione huddling against the far wall, whimpering quietly. The troll was knocking sinks of the wall with its club, working its way towards the frightened witch…_

"So that's how it happened," Draco said softly as he watched an eleven-year-old Ron and Harry take on a fully grown mountain troll; "Sev was angry for weeks after this; he hurt his ankle that night, and then you two didn't even get punished for running off after the troll."

"We didn't go running off after the troll," Harry protested, "We went to find Hermione because she didn't know about the troll."

"Why didn't she know? Wasn't she at the Halloween feast?"

"No…Ron called her a Know-it-all and said she didn't have any friends, so she spent the evening in the bathroom," Harry explained, "Eew-I'd forgotten how gross the troll boogers were; this is the night when we became friends with Hermione."

"Aah-so this is when the Golden Trio finally formed," Draco nodded smiling as he dodged an elbow to his gut, "I can see why you chose this memory." The memory faded around them, and the next one began with the two of them walking up to the school with Severus; they talked quietly as they watched Harry's actions throughout the day-Draco told him everything he knew about what happened with Severus, Sirius and Remus and calmed him down after an outburst with Harry threating to make Dumbles pay-and then came the Quidditch practice.

"There's Luna-or Smith, I guess-giving me the potion," Harry noted, "and I get dizzy a few minutes after I get back in the air-yeah; here's where I start to fall and-"

The memory abruptly changed to show Harry lying in the infirmary, unconscious with Zacharias Smith sitting next to him, holding his hand.

"Can you see the difference between this memory and the earlier one?" Draco's soft question made Harry jump; "In your other memory it was as if we were in the room while your younger self was fighting the troll, but now-it's almost like we're looking at a portrait; we can only see the area of the room that you are in."

"What? Oh; you're right," Harry said with surprise, "We should be able to get a three-sixty view…is this-is this what the memory of a nightmare or dream looks like?"

"I'm not certain," Draco replied thoughtfully, narrowing his eyes at the confrontation between Harry, Dumbledore and himself; "However this certainly isn't a real memory."

"Which means everything that I thought happened is not real," Harry said, feeling relieved, "Then…we can go now, right? I don't want to re-live this, and there's no reason for you to see what happened if it was all a hallucination or whatever." He didn't say it out loud, but he was really embarrassed by what had happened to him during the time he was apparently unconscious, and he didn't want Draco to see it.

"No, we can't go," Draco told him, "First, I don't know how to get out of a memory until it is over, and second-I want to know exactly what Dumbledore made you believe happened to you." His grey eyes had been focused on the scene as the dream-Draco led dream-Harry up to their room, but now he looked at his fiancé; "You should watch it too; Mother would not have suggested it unless she thought it would help you heal from what happened." By this point the dream Harry and Draco had reached their rooms, and Draco watched himself slam Harry against the wall.

"This is another inconsistency," Draco pointed out when Harry walked into the bathroom to take a shower-and walked back out seconds later; "It should have shown you actually taking a shower."

"You just wanted to see me naked," Harry teased, but Draco could see the anxiety in his green eyes; "This…this is where it gets bad." Draco turned his attention back to the scene in front of them, and winced when he saw himself begin to punish-no abuse-Harry. The real Harry didn't watch what was happening in the scene, but instead had his emerald eyes trained on Draco; he saw the way the blond had clenched his fists, and his face went pale with anger. Hesitantly, Harry stepped closer to his fiancé and carefully reached out to place his hand over Draco's; Draco flinched and jerked his hand away, but a moment later he looked over at Harry and his expression softened as he took the brunet's hand in his own. The abuse scene finally ended and it re-focused on Harry following Draco to class, his eyes down-cast as he avoided speaking to anyone.

"I'm sorry I ever believed you would do that to me," the real Harry said, drawing Draco's attention back to him, "I-I didn't believe it at first, but everything seemed so real…"

"It's okay Harry," Draco assured him, "After watching that-I can't even begin to imagine going through it; I understand your reactions earlier."

"Even when I started to believe you really were just using me, I always felt like there was something off," Harry said musingly, not acknowledging Draco's words, "There were just things you did-or didn't do-that didn't make sense; like, you never called me Lion, and there were times when you wouldn't answer me and…it just all seemed wrong. Of course, that makes sense, because it _was_ wrong."

"Yes, well-Dumbledore will pay for doing this to you," Draco assured him, "As will Smith and anyone else who helped him."

"I'm not sure about Smith," Harry said hesitantly; at this point neither boy was watching the scene, they were too involved with their conversation; "We need to find out why he was helping Dumbledore-he might have been tricked into it, or under the influence of a potion; Dumbledore though-I am tired of him causing problems all the time. Hopefully this time we have enough proof to get him sent to Azkaban."

"We should have more than enough proof," Draco said, "and if the ministry still won't do anything about him then we will just have to take care of him ourselves. Are we nearly done with the nightmares? I must admit I don't like seeing myself treat you this way, and I can't stand seeing you being hurt like that." The scene showed Harry knock Draco down and jump over the railing of the stairs in an attempt to escape.

"Yeah-this is the last thing I remember before waking up in-in my parents' house," Harry confirmed, "You and I basically fight and I run, and then I get knocked unconscious…Maybe we can push Dumbledore through the veil."

"Yes, and then we can push Voldie through while we're at it," Draco agreed with a smile; he tugged lightly on Harry's hand and the smaller boy went willingly into his arms; they stood back-to-chest, Draco's arms wrapped loosely around Harry's waist in a comforting gesture as they finished watching Harry's memories. Draco winced when he saw himself use Crucio on Harry; he wanted nothing more than to stop watching the memories, but he was determined to see it through. The more he watched, the more he realized just how lucky he was that Harry was standing there with him, allowing Draco to hold him. "I'm just glad you forgive me-"

"There's nothing to forgive," Harry interrupted, "You didn't do any of those things-it was all mind games Dumbledore was playing." He tilted his head back, wrapping an arm around Draco's neck and pulling him in for a kiss.

Just as their lips touched the memory ended and the boys found themselves back in the infirmary, where they were met by utter chaos.

*********What happened in the infirmary************

As Dumbledore raised his wand to curse Narcissa a loud cry rang throughout the infirmary and a bright flash of fire had everyone shading their eyes. When they could see again, Fawkes was blocking Dumbledore's view of Narcissa, Hermione, Madame Pomfrey and the ministry officials; Dumbledore was unable to see past Fawkes' bright flames, but those standing behind the phoenix were able to see clearly.

"Fawkes!" Dumbledore shouted, apparently shocked, "What are you doing? Get out of the way!"

Fawkes let out another loud cry, and a stream of flames came out of his beak straight at Dumbledore. Everyone waited with bated breath to see what would happen, but the headmaster leapt aside at the last moment, and threw a freezing hex at his former familiar. For several moments Dumbledore and Fawkes battled each other, neither one having a clear advantage; at one point the headmaster had sent a curse at Narcissa, but it was halted by a wall of flames which faded until it was a small circle around the group-whenever a stray curse got too close to them the flames would rise up and block it.

"Narcissa! Hermione!" The group looked over to see Harry and Draco approaching them, having obviously finished with the memories; "What's going on? Are you okay?"

"Dumbledore tried to attack us," Hermione replied, "Then Fawkes appeared to stop him and they have been battling ever since."

"We are all fine," Narcissa assured the boys, "The headmaster did not manage to hit any of us before Fawkes interceded. You two should go for help; any recommendations Minister?"

"If you can get to an open Floo contact Kingsley Shacklebot at the ministry," Scrimgeour suggested, "Don't tell him exactly what happened; simply tell him there is trouble at Hogwarts and to bring a squad of aurors."

"We can help!" Harry protested, but Draco touched his arm.

"Not now Lion," the blond said, "We need someone from the ministry here. Come on. We'll be back as soon as possible," he told his mother and turned to pull Harry out of the room; they had just reached the infirmary door when something slammed into the boys, causing Draco to lose his grip on Harry's arm as they crashed to the floor.

"Don't let them leave Smith!" Dumbledore had taken time out of his duel with Fawkes to send a hex at Harry and Draco, which provided Zacharias Smith-whom everyone except Dumbledore had forgotten about-to block the door; "We need to keep everyone in this room until this is resolved-ack!" He cried out as Fawkes sent a jet of flame at him; he narrowly dodged it, but the flame did singe one of his sleeves. As he turned back to his battle Fawkes raised another circle of fire, this time around Draco, Smith and Harry, protecting them from his duel with the headmaster and trapping the couple with a ruthless Hufflepuff.

"Are you okay Draco?" Harry asked as he got to his feet, offering Draco a hand up.

"I'm fine," Draco replied, "We had better go get help now. Out of our way Smith."

"You won't be getting past me," Smith sneered, "I follow Dumbledore, and I'm not frightened of you. Expelliarmus!" The sudden spell startled Harry and Draco, but not enough for them to let go of their wands, both of which were steadily aimed at Smith. The Hufflepuff did not give up however; when the disarming hex failed he threw a vial at the couple, forcing them to leap to the side. When the vial hit the ground it exploded, enveloping the small group in a cloud of thick smoke; when the smoke cleared Draco was on the ground with Smith's wand at his neck, while Harry had the blond Hufflepuff in a headlock.

"Get off him Smith!" Harry yelled, tightening his arm around Smith's throat-Dudley had done this to him several times in the past, but this was his first time trying the move on someone else.

"Let…go Potter!" Smith choked out, his face turning red from lack of air, "I'll…curse…Cruc-" Smith choked on the last syllable as Harry threw himself backwards, using his leverage to pull the other boy with him so that Draco was free. Zacharias surprised Harry by throwing his weight back, increasing the force of the fall and landing solidly on top of the brunet, knocking Harry's breath from his lungs; Harry's head snapped back from the force of the fall, slamming against the floor and causing his vision to go blurry.

When he could see again, Harry found his arms bound behind his back and saw that Draco had been disarmed; Smith's wand was pointing at Harry, which explained why Draco hadn't attacked the other blond yet.

"Oh, good," Smith said when he saw Harry's eyes were open, "I thought you might be unconscious; can you stand Harry?"

"You don't have permission to use my given name," Harry spat at him, "Let me go right now Smith!" Smith laughed and shook his head at the bound Gryffindor.

"I don't think so," he said, "You're mine Harry-Dumbledore said he would give you to me but, as he is taking too long, I have decided to just take you. On your feet Potter." Zacharias cast a spell that pulled Harry to his feet, and the brunet had to lean on him for a moment until the sudden dizziness passed. As he straightened back up, Harry looked at Draco and noticed that the blond's wand was not too far out of reach; if he could distract Smith Draco should be able to reclaim his wand-the foolish Hufflepuff had not seen fit to bind the Slytherin's hands-and hex Smith.

"What do you want Smith?" Harry asked as he took a step back to look at the other boy.

"I already told you: I want you," Smith replied, and it reminded Harry of when he was in the labyrinth, when Draco had first said that he wanted Harry; when Draco said it Harry got butterflies and felt self-concious and thrilled at the same time, but Smith saying it…well, it just gave him shivers-and not the good kind!

"You can't," Draco spoke up, ignoring Harry's glare, "Harry and I have a bond-and a contract signed in blood; there is no way to break the bond without killing us both."

"We'll see about that," Smith replied, "Dumbledore said it was possible to break the bond without killing Harry, and I'm sure he knows what he's talking about."

"That old coot?" Draco scoffed, "Please! Dumbledore doesn't know shit about our bond-even if he did, he doesn't really care if Harry lives or dies; I'm sure he would be willing to risk my fiancés life if he believed it was for the Greater Good." Harry scowled at his fiancé, mentally willing him to shut up; how was he supposed to distract Smith from the other blond if he wouldn't stop talking?"

"Smith!" Harry drew the Hufflepuff's attention back to himself, "What makes you think I would ever break my bond with Draco to be with you? I love him; you can't change that."

"Oh, but I can," Zacharias smirked, holding up a small vial of a shimmering pink liquid, "This is a love potion-one of the most powerful out there-and once you take this you will forget all about Draco; I will be the most-the only-important thing in your life."

"I won't take it," Harry retorted, glaring at Smith.

"You will if you don't want me to curse Malfoy," Smith replied, "I have learned quite a few curses over the past few months, some of them much worse than a simple Crucio. Shall I demonstrate? I know, what about this one that I learned from an old text book? Sectum-"

"No!" Harry cried, throwing himself at Smith; the Hufflepuff just laughed and stepped aside, smirking at Harry as the brunet lay on the floor; "Don't do it Smith; don't-don't hurt him." Harry maneuvered until he was sitting on his knees and bowed his head in capitulation; "I'll cooperate; I'll drink the potion."

"No-Harry!" Harry shot his fiancé a hard look, and then quickly darted his eyes to Draco's wand and back; Draco's eyes widened for a moment, before he schooled his expression; "Don't do this Lion-don't let him-"

"I won't let him hurt you," Harry said softly, before turning to address Smith, "You have to make a wizards promise that you won't hurt Draco if I agree to take the potion."

"Whatever," Smith agreed, raising his wand; "I-Zacharias Smith-swear on my magic to cause no harm to Draco Malfoy if Harry Potter agrees to drink my love potion." Harry watched as the magic from the promise faded into Smith's skin and then got back to his feet, looking at the other boy expectantly.

"You'll have to help me drink it," Harry pointed out, "Unless you want to untie my hands?"

"Not until after you drink the potion," Smith replied, uncorking the vial, "Open up Pet." The nickname-the same thing the Draco from his hallucination had called him-made Harry shiver and take a step back, but Smith was right there, grabbing his elbow to keep him from going anywhere. Taking a deep breath Harry gave a brief nod and parted his lips slightly as Smith pressed the vial against them.

"Stupefy!" The familiar hex was very welcome to Harry at that point, as he watched Smith freeze; an arm around his waist pulled Harry away from the Hufflepuff, and the brunet leaned into Draco's embrace, almost forgetting the bindings on his wrists until a whispered word cancelled the spell. Harry turned around and pressed his forehead to Draco's chest, wrapping his arms around his fiancés neck.

"When will all this bullshit stop?" Harry demanded.

"After we kill Voldemort and get rid of Dumbledore," Draco replied, "Then I can take you back to our kingdom where no one will ever be able to bother you without going through me."

"I thought you wanted to take over the world," Harry laughed, "How will you do that if we hide away in the castle?"

"That's what minions are for," Draco replied carelessly, pressing a kiss to Harry's unruly locks, "Does that mean-"

"No," Harry interrupted, "That does not mean I'm actually considering helping you take over the world Dray. Come on; let's make sure Smith can't get away and then try to get out of this circle." He started to pull out of Draco's arms, but the blond stopped him, leaning down for a quick kiss before reluctantly releasing Harry. Draco pointed his wand at the Hufflepuff and bound him tightly with silver chains before he and Harry turned their attention to the wall of flames.

"We need to get rid of these," Draco stated the obvious, "and I'm sure a simple Aguamenti won't be much help in this instance…perhaps a freezing charm?"

"Why don't we just focus our magic like we did that first day in the Great Hall?" Harry suggested, "Think it will work on Phoenix fire?"

"Only one way to find out," Draco said, extending his hand-not his wand hand-for Harry to take. Harry accepted his hand and looked at Draco expectantly. "Just try to imagine the flames going out; I don't think using water would be a good idea, because the steam would most likely affect us." Harry nodded and both boys pointed their wands at the barrier before closing their eyes.

After several minutes of intense concentration Harry and Draco felt the magic surrounded them collapse, and they could suddenly hear Dumbledore's battle with the phoenix once again.

"Harry! Draco!" Hermione cried, running over to the boys, "Are you okay? What did you do? How did you get rid of the flames?" Evidently the couple had accidentally vanished both rings of Phoenix fire.

"Magic," Harry replied cheekily before turning to watch the battle; the headmaster and the phoenix were evenly matched…perhaps another distraction could work to their advantage.

"Aaah!" He cried, sinking to his knees and clutching at his scar, "No! He's here!" He cried out as if in pain, and everyone rushed to surround him.

"Harry?" Dumbledore called, "What do you mean? He can't be here; the wards would-"

"Now Fawkes!" Harry shouted, standing up; Fawkes let out a shrill cry and encased the headmaster in flames. Everyone could hear Dumbledore cry out, and they could see him writhing in pain-then his form began to change; Dumbledore became taller, his beard shrank and his hair took on a lustrous sheen. A few seconds later the Phoenix flames vanished and Lucius Malfoy stood in front of them.

"Fools!" The Malfoy patriarch sneered, "My master will not fail-you shall all suffer at his hands!"

"Get him!" Scrimgeour shouted and the aurors ran forward, but Lucius vanished in a flash of light, taking the bound Zacharias with him. "What do you have to say for yourself Madame?" The minister pointed an accusing finger at Narcissa; "It was your husband who attacked Mr. Potter-were you and your son in league with him the whole time?"

"Of course not," Narcissa returned haughtily, "Draco loves Harry; neither of us would allow Lucius to harm him, and that was not Lucius. I know you won't believe me, but Lucius attacked Harry over the summer and has been punished according to the laws of my kingdom; he has been locked away in a place he can never escape from. This was undoubtedly another of the headmasters tricks to get out of trouble; I would recommend taking him into custody and questioning him with veritaserum."

"Or make him write his responses with a blood quill," Harry muttered, "And have him sign his name to the bottom stating that everything he wrote was the absolute truth."

"You cannot tell me you believe this nonsense!" Scrimgeour was outraged; "Mr. Potter-clearly Albus was right and this is a Death Eater plot-"

"And clearly you really are a fool if you are going to fall for that trick," Madame Pomfrey snapped, "I know what I saw Minister; I would recognize Albus Dumbledore's magical signature anywhere, and that was definitely him."

"How can you accuse Draco of such a thing?" Hermione demanded, "Anyone with eyes can see he and Harry care deeply for one another, and Narcissa already treats him as a son; and here I thought you were actually smarter than Fudge!" Draco stayed silent throughout the exchange, content to just hold Harry in his arms and watch to see how red the new minister's face could get.

"Now, now," Narcissa said calmly, "There is another way to settle this-simply talk to Minerva McGonagall; she is the one who told me what Dumbledore was up to in the first place."

"Then I shall speak to her," Scrimgeour snapped, "and afterwards I will return to get the truth from you." He turned to the aurors; "I am returning to the ministry; I want some of you to go find Minerva McGonagall and inform her that her presence is required at the ministry-I want the rest of you to seek out Dumbledore and bring him in for questioning as well. I will get to the bottom of this." He glared at the room in general, before storming to Madame Pomfrey's office; a moment later they heard the floo, and then the aurors exited the hospital wing, leaving behind the students, Madame Pomfrey and Narcissa. Narcissa walked over to an empty bed and sat down, while Pomfrey pulled up a chair near her; Draco transfigured another hospital chair into something more comfortable-decidedly ignoring Pomfrey's glare-and sat, pulling an unresisting Harry to sit in his lap, while Hermione paced in front of them, obviously thinking.

"That was…interesting," Hermione finally said with a sigh as she sat down on one of the hospital beds next to Narcissa, "I can't believe he got away! How did he escape Phoenix Fire? No wizard should be able to!"

"No," Narcissa said softly, "But some Fae can; that is why I know it was not Lucius-although he married me, he is a wizard without a drop a Fae blood in his veins. Lucius could never have escaped the Phoenix Fire."

"If Lucius isn't Fae then Draco is only half Fae," Hermione said, "I thought only full-blooded Fae could inherit the throne?"

"You've been reading again Granger," Draco said with amusement, "It's true only a full-blooded Fae can inherit, and that is why the magic works a bit differently in the realm; any child born there will automatically be a full-blooded Fae as long as at least one of his parents is Fae-the other parent can be a Wizard or even a Muggle and it wouldn't matter."

"In a true marriage the spouse also becomes Fae," Narcissa said, "My marriage to Lucius was not considered a true one because it was arranged by our parents-this was before my uncle named me his heir-and the bonding took place here instead of in the realm After the bonding Harry, you will become Fae and inherit some of our powers."

"Um…okay," Harry said uncertainly, "That's…okay."

"Articulate as ever," Draco teased, before becoming serious, "Now, we need to prove that Dumbledore really has been behind everything; we also need to find out if Sev and the others are okay-you said Sirius and Tonks went after Sev and Remus?"

"Yes," Narcissa nodded, "I had hope that they would return by now; they have been gone for several hours. If we do not hear from them soon we may have to use a locating spell. Poppy-were you able to completely remove the magical drain on Harry?"

"Yes," Madame Pomfrey said confidently, "Dumbledore won't be stealing anymore magic from Harry; the thing that worries me is how long the spell was on him-as far as I could tell Dumbledore has been draining Harry's magic for years, and I can't believe I didn't notice it sooner!"

"Perhaps he-Dumbledore, I mean-temporarily stopped using the spell anytime Harry was in the hospital wing," Hermione suggested, "He did always seem to be around whenever Harry wound up in here."

"So do you think he's been stealing my magic since I started school?" Harry questioned the nurse.

"Even longer than that, I'm afraid," she replied, looking at him with something akin to pity, "From the scan I did earlier, it seems he has been draining some of your magic since you were quite young-possibly ever since your parents…ever since the night You-Know-Who vanished. If he had started using the draining spell recently you-or someone else-would have noticed; you would begin feeling tired at random moments and you would be having difficulty with your spellwork-by beginning when you were young, the headmaster gave your body time to become adjusted to the spell."

"So that means his magic will be even stronger, right?" Pomfrey nodded in response to Draco's question, "How long until his magic its true potential?"

"Most likely several weeks," Pomfrey replied, "Don't worry Mr. Potter-I won't make you stay here the whole time; I will, however, insist that the people closest to you carry a calming draught with them at all times while your magical levels are stabilizing-preferably one made by Severus. The stress from the rapid increase of magical power can cause outbreaks of accidental magic if you become too irritated."

"Well, now that Draco doesn't insult me and my friends on a daily basis that shouldn't be too much of a problem," Harry said, grinning mischievously up at his fiancé; Draco's only response was to shake his head and smile.

"I mean it Harry Potter!" Madame Pomfrey said sternly, "If you won't take this seriously then I _will_ make you stay here until your magic becomes stable."

"I'm taking it seriously, I swear!" Harry quickly assured her, "As soon as Sev gets back I'll ask him for some calming draught." Draco chuckled softly behind him and when Harry turned his head to glare to blond merely gave him a cheeky grin and a peck on the lips, causing Harry to blush and roll his eyes.

"You had better," Pomfrey said, "Now, I think it would be best if you headed down to the Great Hall-dinner should be starting shortly and I'm sure the rest of your friends are eager to see you; I would have you eat here where I can keep an eye on you for a bit longer, but after six years of treating you…well, I would really prefer not to listen to your complaints. Mr. Malfoy-I trust you will make sure he eats enough?"

"Of course," Draco assured her, "I won't let him leave the table until he's eaten enough." Harry started to tell them that he didn't need someone to make him eat, when the infirmary doors opened and Tonks walked in, followed by Remus.

"Tonks! Remus! You're okay!" Harry cried, pulling away from Draco so he could go hug the werewolf; he stepped away and then looked towards the door; "Where's-Sirius!" Severus stepped through the open doors at that moment, levitating an unconscious Sirius behind him.

**AN: Another cliffhanger…they just seem to keep popping up, lol. A little bit of resolution with Harry and Draco, unfortunately Dumbles vanished, but how will he get away with his actions this time? Hmm, does the 'crazy old coot' have another card up his sleeve, or will he finally be held responsible for his actions? Well, he'll have to be found first…As for Sirius-next chapter we will finally find out what happened with the werewolves. Thanks once again to everyone who reviewed, please let me know what you think! I'll update as soon as I can. **


	32. Chapter 31

"Sirius!" Harry ran forward as Severus levitated an unconscious Sirius into the infirmary, "What happened to him? Is he okay?" He was vaguely aware of Hermione and Draco standing on either side of him and lending silent support, but his whole attention was on his godfather, lying there still and silent.

"Everyone out of the way!" Madame Pomfrey commanded, pushing Harry to the side, "Quick Severus; put him on the bed. Mr. Potter-will you please stop crowding me!" Draco gently grabbed Harry's arm and pulled him out of the medi-witches way as she bustled around the infirmary. "Now Severus, what happened to him? Werewolf or Death Eater?" While she was speaking Severus had placed the unconscious Sirius on an empty hospital bed, and she began casting diagnostic spells.

"It was me, actually," Severus replied calmly, ignoring the outraged look on Harry's face, "Sirius got himself slightly injured while rescuing us-"

"I think a bone-crushing curse is more than 'slightly injured'," Remus frowned at the potions master, "The blood boiling curse wasn't too pleasant either." Remus scowled at Severus and the potions master sneered back at him; Poppy let out an annoyed huff and closed the curtains around Sirius' bed, muttering about needing peace to work.

"Yes, but I dulled the pain almost immediately and then reversed the curses as soon as it was safe to do so," Severus replied with a glare, "All that remained were a few scrapes and bruises, but he continued to whine as if he was dying. I finally got tired of listening to him and so persuaded him to drink a sleeping draught."

"Severus used physical force," Tonks said cheerfully, bouncing on her toes, "I've never seen him do that before, but he did; he pushed Sirius against the wall and _I _thought that they were going to kiss, but then Severus…well, I didn't see exactly what he did, but he forced Sirius to drink the potion and then cousin Siri was _out_! Severus used the levitation spell and activated a portkey back to his house, and then we came here. It was exciting, and we walloped those Death Eater's good!"

"We escaped with our lives and left a few of the enemy looking worse for the wear," Severus corrected, "If Sirius hadn't decided to get himself injured then we could have done much more damage, and perhaps even wiped out that base entirely. And I was not about to kiss that mutt; you have some serious mental issues Tonks. Why are you looking at me like that?" He narrowed his eyes at Harry, who was biting his lip as if to hold something back.

"I just-I can't believe you drugged my godfather," Harry shook his head in amusement, "I mean, sure you always threaten to poison people, but I've never known you to go through with it; he must have really annoyed you. You're sure he's okay?"

"I am certain," Severus confirmed, "As soon as Poppy revives him he will undoubtedly begin annoying us all again. And you-how are you doing Harry?" His sharp eyes looked over Harry, but he couldn't detect any injuries.

"I'm fine," Harry replied, "Draco found me and saved me and we found out Dumbledore was behind it all, but unfortunately he got away again. Now the minister thinks that Draco and Narcissa are planning to turn me over to Voldie." Severus sneered at that and made a snarky comment about inept ministers and how they were running the wizarding world into the ground, causing Harry to laugh out loud.

"What exactly happened?" Remus asked, "Severus contacted us and said that you had vanished and he and I were supposed to go to infiltrate a pack of werewolves to see if they had you."

"Well, I guess it all started when we got back to school and Dumbledore-"

"Excuse me Harry dear," Narcissa interrupted softly, "However, perhaps we should awaken Sirius first, that way we do not have to go over this more than once." Harry nodded his agreement and walked towards Sirius's bed, but before he could reach for the curtains they were pulled open.

"Well, I've checked him over and Severus was right," Pomfrey said, "Sirius has a few bruises, but nothing life-threatening. You can wake him up now if you like; I'm going back to my office to update my files if you need me." With a nod to the room in general Pomfrey went back to her office, firmly closing the door behind her to give the group some privacy.

"I'm going to find Ron and Luna," Hermione announced, "I need to let them know that everyone is safe; tell Sirius I'm glad he's okay." She gave Harry and Draco each a quick hug before stepping away; "I'll see you guys later." After Hermione left, Draco transfigured another chair into something more comfortable-he figured this was easier than moving the other chair over to Sirius' bed-and sat down.

"Let's get comfortable before we wake Sirius," he suggested, extending his hand to Harry; the brunet shrugged and sat down with him again as the rest of the group also transfigured chairs, and then Severus pointed his wand at the unconscious animagus.

"Ennervate," he said, and a moment later Sirius' eyes fluttered open; he was disoriented for a moment, but then he sat up and his eyes landed on Severus.

"You poisoned me!" He accused the other man, who simply rolled his eyes, "Don't roll your eyes at me! I was in pain and injured…all because I wanted to rescue you, and how do you repay me?"

"Please," Severus scoffed, "Your inept rescue attempt was not necessary; Remus and I were doing just fine on our own. You, however managed to get surrounded within moments of entering the compound, and Remus and I had to save you."

"Hey! You weren't supposed to tell anyone about that!" Sirius protested, "Er, I mean…it was all part of my ingenious plan to make it easy for you to locate us; we could have gotten out of it on our own."

"Come on Siri," Tonks laughed, "I tripped over…well I guess my feet, and one of the wolves heard me; we were in deep shit until Severus helped us. Thanks Severus! You too Remus!"

"Betrayed by my own cousin," Sirius shook his head sadly, "What is the world coming to?"

"Well, I'm just glad you made it back safely," Harry grinned as Sirius seemed to notice him for the first time, "It's been an interesting day, huh Siri?"

"Harry!" Sirius cried happily, "You're okay! Where were you? What happened?" He got up and hugged Harry in relief before sitting back down on the bed and looking at his godson attentively; "Who did this to you Pup?"

"Well, it was Dumbledore," Harry replied, "and he got Zacharias Smith to help. I guess it technically started when I left Dumbledore's office earlier today…" Harry spent the next hour telling the others what had happened to him, with some input from Draco; Narcissa picked up the story from where the boys entered the pensieve, and then Draco finished it with Dumbledore's disappearance.

"Albus has gone too far," Severus said, black eyes flashing, "As if trying to separate you and Draco wasn't enough he invaded your mind-and don't you look at me like that Harry Potter; I already apologized for the Occlumency lessons and you forgave me, so drop it-and he has been draining your magic since Lily's death…I could kill him for what he has done."

"You'll have to get in line on that one Sevvy," Sirius growled, "Dumbles is mine. Ow!" He glared at Severus, who had shot a stinging hex at him.

"I told you to stop calling me that," Severus replied, "Insolent mutt."

"No one is going to kill him," Harry said, smiling at the interaction, "Dumbledore's going to be arrested and sent to Azkaban, where he can enjoy the company of the dementors, right Dray?"

"Actually, I agree with Sev and Siri on this one," Draco replied, "The ministry will never be able to stop Dumbledore, so we have to take care of him ourselves-and if that results in his death, well…he was willing to let Smith give you a love potion which-if it didn't kill you outright-would leave you enslaved to that manipulative Hufflepuff for the rest of your life. I am perfectly fine with Dumbles dying."

"Well, when you put it that way what he did sounds bad," Harry said drily.

"You're certain you are okay?" Remus questioned, "Having your magic drained like that…you don't feel tired or anything?"

"I'm fine," Harry laughed, "In fact…I really don't fancy going to sleep anytime soon; I'm afraid I'll have nightmares." Draco tightened his arms around Harry's waist and gave him a soft kiss on the cheek.

"Speaking of which, I would like to view those memories Harry," Severus said, "I know Draco watched them with you, but if they do start affecting you in a negative way you may need an adult perspective on them."

"And I should take a copy to the ministry," Tonks added, "We need to file charges against Dumbledore, and those memories will be key evidence."

"No," Harry shook his head, "People will view the memories and try to accuse Draco of actually abusing me; I don't want to go through that and I don't want Draco to have to deal with it."

"At least give them to Sev," Draco suggested before anyone else could protest, "Let him view the memories, and if he feels they can be useful in our case against Dumbledore we will give them to our solicitor. I can handle a few people being angry at me, because anyone with half a brain will be able to tell that the time when you were unconscious was not a true memory; I will do anything to get Dumbledore put away."

"Well, okay," Harry agreed hesitantly, tilting his head back to look at Draco, "If you're sure?" Draco nodded; "Okay Sev-the memories are in the pensieve, you can take them with you when you leave. Now that we're done talking about me, what happened to you guys?"

"Dumbledore called me to his office not long after you vanished and told me that he suspected you had been abducted by werewolves," Severus replied, "He told me to take Remus and infiltrate their stronghold, so I did. When we got there I told them that the Dark Lord had cleared me of any traitor accusations and Remus said he wanted to join the pack. The let us in, and I told them the Dark Lord-fine! Tom!" He glared at Harry, who made a face every time he said 'the Dark Lord'; "I told them Tom wanted me to verify that they really had you, so they led us down to a cell on the bottom floor, and when they opened the door I saw what I thought was you in the cell; we rushed in, they closed the door and trapped us."

"Lucky for us," Remus picked up the story, "Severus had his robe pockets full of his original battle potions, so he was able to blast the door open; we got out of the cell, fought off a few Death Eaters and wolves, and then we grew suspicious of a trap-and that's when we heard Sirius yelling at some Death Eater's."

"I tripped and they found us," Tonks added, "We were surrounded by Death Eaters and werewolves, and then Severus and Remus appeared out of nowhere and started throwing potions at them; I never saw such amazing potions! They exploded, and mimicked spells-only, they couldn't throw them at anyone too close to us. Then, just when we thought it was over, more re-enforcements arrived, and one of them shot a bone-crushing hex at Sirius. It was awful, the way he was screaming! But Severus cast a numbing spell on him and had him drink a healing potion, so he was able to fight again. Then, another Death Eater sent a blood boiling curse at Severus-"

"And the stupid mutt jumped in front of it," Severus interrupted, "He was not yet completely healed of the first curse, and rather than trust me to take care of myself, he decided he wanted to be a masochist and incur even more injuries."

"Well excuse me for trying to save you!" Sirius huffed, "Ungrateful Slytherin Prat." He glared at Severus while the potions master scowled back at him.

"You are a foolish Gryffindor, as always," Severus returned, "Your godson just brought you back from the dead, and you go on a dangerous rescue mission where you get seriously injured twice-and the second time it was by your own choice! Did you never stop to think that I would have a counter ready for such curses? I was, after all, subjected to them numerous times over the years in my life as a spy; I could have taken the counter immediately and been fine, but with us in the middle of a battle I could not heal you and protect us at the same time! Were you trying to die again?"

"That is enough you two," Narcissa said firmly before Sirius could reply, "While it is nice to see that you care for one another, there are other ways to show it rather than yelling."

"What?!" Sirius and Severus cried in unison;

"I don't-"

"How dare-"

"I said enough," Narcissa spoke over them and then turned to address Tonks, "Are you well niece? Were you injured in the battle?"

"Oh no; I'm fine Aunt Narcissa," Tonks replied, "Although it is rather strange to be talking to you like this."

"My fault, I'm afraid," Narcissa said sadly, "I could not go against Mother when Andromeda was disowned, but at the very least I should have sought her out again after Mother's death. It is my hope that we can put the past behind us and move forward as a family."

"I'd like that," Tonks grinned, "And I'm sure Mum would too; she use to cry when I was younger, and she told me she missed her sister, but she stopped talking about you around the time I started school. When I see her I'll tell her you're thinking about her."

"Yes, please give her my love," Narcissa smiled, "If you are un-injured perhaps you should make your report to the ministry; we need to find out how Dumbledore managed to set up a trap involving Death Eater's and werewolves."

"I agree," Tonks said, "I'll see what I can find out and contact you later via the family mirror, would that be alright?"

"I would appreciate it, "Narcissa replied, "Be safe."

"Okay," Tonks agreed, heading for the infirmary door; "See you later Harry! Take care of him Cousin Draco! And Severus-make sure you take care of Cousin Sirius; he needs someone to look after him." She gave a small laugh as she opened the door; "Oh, and Remus? You should come by for dinner sometime; Mum and Dad said they've missed you the past few weeks."

"I'll stop by in a day or so Tonks," Remus promised with a smile, "Take care." Tonks said a final farewell to the room, and then she was gone.

"It's nearly dinner time-do you two want to go to the Great Hall?" Sirius asked, "If not we can get Poppy to have some food brought up here. Where is Madame Poppy anyway?"

"She determined that you were well and left us to deal with you," Severus replied, "I would recommend avoiding the Great Hall for the moment, as we still have much to discuss."

"Then we should go back to our rooms," Draco suggested, "We can have Dobby and Winky bring our dinner there."

"I think I'll take my leave," Remus said, getting to his feet, "With Dumbledore having vanished, someone needs to start looking for him. I will pretend that I still believe in him, in his cause and that Harry has been corrupted by Draco; this way I will be able to talk to those out there that he trusts."

"A good plan," Narcissa said approvingly, "Be safe Remus, and if it gets too dangerous you may use this to return to my castle." She handed him an amulet; "It has been blessed, and it will allow you to retain your intelligence when you transform, as well as allow you to tap into the wolf's strength even when you are not in wolf form."

"Thank you Narcissa," Remus smiled, "Take care Harry, Draco. Sirius-try to stay out of trouble, will you? I trust you to take care of everyone, Severus."

"Oh sure, place the burden on me," Severus scowled, "As if keeping Harry and Draco out of trouble wasn't hard enough, now you want me to look after the mutt? You ask too much wolf."

"Hey! I don't need anyone to look after me!" Sirius protested, "I can take care of myself just fine!"

"That's what I said," Harry told him, "But they just replied with-"

"Oh yes, you've done an excellent job so far," Severus sneered, ignoring Harry's words, "You were framed for murder, spent thirteen years in Azkaban, another year on the run, one in hiding, fell through the veil, and suffered from two potentially deadly curses. No, you don't need anyone to take care of you." Remus gave Narcissa a small nod and then slipped out of the room before anyone else noticed.

"Save it Siri," Harry laughed, "At least you know he cares."

"I do not care!" Severus glared at Harry, "You had better be glad you are my nephew, otherwise I would have to-"

"Use him for potions ingredients?" Draco supplied helpfully, "Yes, well, I'm afraid I would have to take offense at my fiancé being dismembered. I rather like him the way he is."

"Must you boys always argue?" Narcissa questioned, "I am going to let Madame Pomfrey know that we are leaving."

Fifteen minutes later-after Pomfrey gave everyone one last look over-the small group headed up to Harry and Draco's room and sat down to dinner, which was brought to them by Dobby and Winky. After they ate they moved to the sitting room-Harry and Draco shared the loveseat as usual, Narcissa took a nearby chair, and Severus and Sirius wound up sharing the couch.

"We have a few things to discuss before your friends get here," Severus began, "First, I have finished the potion to remove the horcrux from you; the last batch worked perfectly on the item I tested-"

"I managed to get Hufflepuff's cup out of my sister's vault," Narcissa informed them, "It was a horcrux as I had thought."

"Yes, and the potion removed Voldemort's soul while leaving the cup intact," Severus added, "It takes a little over one month to brew, so I will have a new batch ready for you on November first."

"That's great!" Harry enthused, "The Occlumency has been working, but I'm always afraid he'll find a way through, and then after what happened this afternoon-well, now I'm worried about what he would do if he found out I was a horcrux."

"In his nightmare Voldie found out he was a horcrux," Draco supplied, "He-well, in the nightmare I was only with him because I was ordered to be; I was supposed to win him over and keep him alive, and in return I could have Harry for my own and do whatever I wanted with him."

"Oh," Narcissa said softly, understanding dawning on her face; "You're afraid that he will want to keep you alive and allow his Death Eater's to torture you with anything short of death."

"Yes," Harry nodded, leaning into Draco's side; the blond put a comforting arm around his shoulder, "I would rather die than be kept alive so that Voldemort can live."

"Don't worry," Severus said, "No one here will tell him that you are a horcrux, and even Dumbledore would not sink that low, for the same reasons you just stated. In just one more month the horcrux will be gone."

"Harry-if anything does happen before we get the horcrux out of you, I want you to promise me something," Sirius said, "If it looks like you might die, tell Voldemort the truth-let him read it from your mind or whatever; buy us some time so that we can rescue you, because as long as one of us lives someone will come rescue you."

"That's right," Draco agreed, "Unless you know for a fact that there is no one left to save you, I want you to do whatever it takes to survive. I don't want you to be tortured for the rest of your life, but if there is a chance that you will one day escape I need you to stay alive."

"Okay," Harry agreed hesitantly, "But if I tell him that I am a horcrux one of you had better come save me or else I will find a way to make your life miserable as well."

"Deal," Draco smirked, kissing him on the cheek, "So, what else do we need to talk about?"

"Training," Sirius replied, "We're going to start training you on using more powerful spells tomorrow. All of your friends are welcome to join us if you feel that they are ready and can be trusted. We will train for at least one hour before dinner every day, and three hours on the weekends."

"On the weekends?" Draco pouted, "Why do we have to work on the weekends?"

"Well because we would really like to keep you both alive," Severus replied drily, "However, if you would rather be killed we can just cancel the training sessions altogether."

"We'll be fine," Harry said quickly, "But…can we at least have Sunday off of training?"

"I think that would be a good idea," Narcissa said, "Be reasonable Severus-they need at least one day a week in which to relax."

"Very well," Severus sighed, "No training on Sunday. Sirius has also said that he will help you learn your animagus forms."

"Ooh! That's exciting!" Harry said, "I wonder what I'll be? We already know Draco is going to be a-"

"If you say ferret I will turn you into a flobberworm," Draco said warningly.

"Now Draco, don't be ridiculous," Severus scolded, "You know you can't turn him into a magical creature or he would be stuck that way forever; why not simply turn him into a kitten, or a bunny?"

"Hey! No fair!" Harry protested, "I don't want to be a bunny!"

"Very well," Draco smirked, "Then I'll turn you into a kitten, with a big pink bow around your neck."

"You can't do that!" Harry said, "Siri! Tell Draco he can't turn me into a kitten!"

"If you turn Harry into a kitten I'll turn you into a hamster," Sirius threatened.

"You will not turn my godson into a hamster," Severus glared at the dog animagus, "If you do I will turn you into a goldfish."

"Hey! Why are you taking up for Draco and not for me?" Harry demanded, "You're my uncle-you should be taking my side!"

"Yeah!" Draco chimed in, "And you're my cousin Sirius; you're supposed to help me!"

"But he's my godfather," Harry argued, "So he should help me."

"And Severus is helping me because he's my godfather," Draco pointed out. The two boys glared at each other for a moment, then Draco leaned forward and pressed their lips together in a short, passionate kiss; when Draco pulled away he was smirking-although he was careful not to let Harry see it-and Harry's face was lightly flushed.

"Um so…what else do we need to discuss?" Harry asked, "I'll be rid of the horcrux in about a month, we start training with spells and our animagus forms tomorrow…what about Dumbles?"

"We will decide what to do with Dumbledore once we find him," Narcissa said, "Earlier Madame Pomfrey gave me some bad news; it seems that Voldemort attacked a small town outside of London this weekend. It was a little town made up of mixed families, with one Muggle parent and one magical; six families were attacked, and everyone was killed except for children under the age of eight-those children were taken by him, but we don't know why."

"What's being done about it?" Harry demanded, "Is the ministry looking for the kids? Offering more protection to families like that?"

"The minister is speaking to the Muggle prime minister to try and work on improving the security for families that have Muggle family members," Narcissa replied, "As for locating the children-Poppy said she hadn't heard any news about those plans. It's believed that the children were most likely taken to be raised by loyal Death Eater's, although there is the chance that…well, they may not be alive any longer."

"We have to find them!" Harry protested, "We can't just assume they're dead! How many children does he have?"

"I'm not sure," Narcissa said, "We don't have much information at all I'm afraid."

"Ask Tonks when she mirror-calls you later," Sirius suggested, "She should be able to get some useful information; if only we still had a contact within the Death Eater's…"

"I can use my mark to find Voldemort," Severus said, "I don't like to do it until we know what we are up against, but once we speak to Tonks we can start planning. In the meantime, if I go into London I may be able to pick up the traces of dark magic and get some information that way. I will go tonight."

"I'm going with you," Sirius announced, "I can help you look for the traces of dark magic-it's something every Black is taught growing up."

"I can ask some of the other Slytherin's," Draco offered, "I don't know if they will talk to me, but it's worth a shot."

"What else can we do?" Harry asked.

"Just stay safe," Narcissa told him, "I know you want to help Harry, and if there is anything that we need you, specifically, to do we will tell you. In the meantime, this is something that you should leave up to the adults; you are very capable, but this is not your responsibility."

"But-" Harry fell silent thoughtfully, "I-I feel like I should do something; is there anything I can do from the school to help? What about scrying? I heard Hermione mention that before; can't I try scrying for the missing children?"

"Scrying takes a lot of energy and concentration," Severus informed him, "You also need to have something that relates to the person or object you are searching for. You can see if you have a talent for scrying-practice by locating your friends-and if I am able to retrieve any of the children's personal possessions we will allow you to try it. Your friends will be here soon, so reassure them that you are alright and catch them up on our conversation, then you should go to bed-get some rest before classes start tomorrow."

"If there is any blood at the crime scene you should collect it," Draco suggested, "The twins may be able to use their Family Locator Map to locate the missing children."

"Excellent idea Draco," Sirius approved, "Make sure you two don't stay up too late; I'm ready to go whenever you are Severus."

"I want to stop by my manor first," Severus replied, "We should get going. Here are the calming draughts Poppy wanted you to have Harry; make sure you and Draco each have a vial on you at all times. I will see you both in class tomorrow." Draco and Harry bid Severus and Sirius goodnight, and then Narcissa took her leave, with a final admonishment for the boys to go to bed at a decent hour.

**AN: Sorry for the delay, but I have been having a lot of trouble getting my ideas written down lately; it's like they don't want to translate form my head onto my computer. This will probably be the last chapter I get up for a while-I'm going to be busy with the holidays and I also want to re-read through what I have already written to make sure it's flowing cohesively, so I most likely won't have a new chapter up until after the new year. I am not abandoning the story though! I am merely taking a step back so that I can make sure it's still going in the direction I want it to. Thank you to everyone who reviewed and I hope you'll bear with me during this little hiatus. Until next time!**


	33. Chapter 32

"Finally," Draco sighed as he closed the door to their suite; it was ten minutes before curfew, and their group of friends had just left, leaving Draco and Harry alone at last; "I don't know about you, but I am ready for bed."

Their friends had arrived just after Narcissa left and they had spent the last few hours discussing everything that had happened to them. They each had different theories about what Dumbledore was up to, although Draco's theory that Dumbledore was trying to manipulate everyone so that he could take credit for the defeat of Voldemort was the most believable. As for Fawkes' defection-Hermione did some research and found that a Phoenix would not serve someone who was being deceitful or willfully harming others, and so he had turned on the headmaster, protecting those whom Dumbledore would have harmed.

During their conversation Narcissa had returned and informed them that Dumbledore was still missing and his office locked, and McGonagall had transformed into her animagus form and vanished out onto the grounds. The minister believed that Dumbledore was in his locked office, and had ordered the teachers to find a way in; Narcissa told the teens that if Dumbledore was truly injured one of the portraits would have sent for help by now, but the minister didn't believe her and he refused to enlist the help of portraits to find out if anyone was in fact in the office. She also let them know that Severus and Sirius were still searching for the attacked village and would probably be gone most of the night. Shortly after Narcissa gave them this news she left once again, and their friends left less than an hour later, leaving the boys alone for the first time since they had gotten up that morning.

"It's been a long day," Harry agreed with a yawn, "I just don't know if I'm ready to try and go to sleep yet. Hermione made some good points earlier; how do we know Dumbles didn't tell Pansy's dad about me being a horcrux? I mean, he's obviously working with the Death Eater's, or at least manipulating them somehow." Harry really didn't want to believe that Voldemort knew the truth behind their connection, but with the way Dumbledore had been acting lately he couldn't help but worry; the headmaster had proved beyond the shadow of a doubt that he would do anything in the name of the "Greater Good".

"Stop worrying about it so much," Draco chided, sitting back down beside Harry and wrapping an arm around the brunet's shoulders, "As far as Dumbledore knows, the only way to destroy Tom is for you to die, and if he tells Voldie that you are a horcrux then the Dark Lord would guard you more carefully than his own soul-because you harbor a piece of his soul. No matter what, Dumbles wants Voldie gone-most likely in a way that lets the world see him as a savior once again, and you as the poor boy who nobly sacrificed his life so that Voldie could be defeated once and for all. So, it really would not be in his best interest to let Voldie-or any of his followers-know the truth."

"So…you don't think he'll tell Voldemort?" Harry questioned, leaning into Draco's embrace and taking comfort from his fiancé.

"No, I don't," Draco replied, as he got back to his feet, pulling Harry up along with him; "Are you ready to go to bed now Lion?"

"Yes," Harry agreed, allowing the blond to lead him up the stairs to their room, "I think I should be able to sleep now, as long as…oh! I forgot about these!" Harry pulled away from Draco and walked over to the bed, smiling softly as he picked up the three stuffed animals Dobby had brought for him; the house elf had even cleaned them up some, so they looked well-loved, but they didn't look as tattered as they had before.

"Moony, Padfoot and Prongs," Draco said softly as he stood behind Harry, "That reminds me; I brought something else from the house."

Harry watched curiously as Draco took an object out of his rob pocket and re-sized it before handing it to the Gryffindor. When Harry saw what it was, he almost dropped the picture in shock, but tightened his fingers around it just in time. It was a picture of him as a baby, sitting on the floor with Padfoot while his parents smiled happily behind them. Draco watched as Harry stroked the glass covering the picture and wasn't too surprised to see the tears on the smaller boys face.

"You can set it on the nightstand if you like," Draco said, "Or even on the mantle in the sitting room; wherever you like."

"I think I'll put it on my desk," Harry replied, walking across the room to set it down; he returned to Draco and wrapped his arms around the blonde's neck, leaning up to give him a quick kiss on the lips; "Thank you for bringing it for me Dray; it means a lot. I have a lot of pictures of my parents when they were younger, but this is the first I've ever seen of us as a family."

"You're welcome," Draco said, kissing his unruly locks, "We can make another trip when we have more time and see what else is salvageable; anything you want to keep but don't have room for at the moment can be put in a vault in Gringotts. Now come on; let's get to bed."

The boys changed into their pajamas and climbed into bed; Harry hesitated for a moment before lying down with his head on Draco's chest, as he had just about every night since they began sharing a bed. Draco smiled at this and rubbed his back soothingly, willing to just hold his fiancé after the stressful day they had.

"Good night Dray," Harry murmured, snuggling in close to the blond.

"Sweet dreams Lion," Draco responded, pressing a kiss to his dark locks again. The sound of Draco's heart beating in his ear soon lulled Harry to sleep, but Draco remained awake longer, listening to his lover breathe and saying a silent thank-you to Merlin that he had been found and brought home safely.

"Idiot boy!" Zacharias flinched at the angry words and watched fearfully as the man who appeared to be Lucius Malfoy paced in front of him, fuming, "You had a simple task-to separate Potter from the Malfoy brat, and you couldn't even handle that! Now everything is ruined!" The man in front of him had apparated them to an old abandoned house and the Stupefy had worn off, but Zacharias was still bound in the silver chains conjured by Malfoy and unable to move. He decided to keep quiet and watched with wide eyes as the man continued to pace and mutter to himself; as he watched the image before him seemed to shimmer, and soon Dumbledore was standing in front of him, his normally twinkling blue eyes cold with fury.

As he lay there on the floor Zacharias had to wonder how he wound up in this mess, but he knew. It all started because his father owed a debt to Dumbledore, and the headmaster would only release it if Zacharias agreed to assist him. It was simple things at first, like joining the DA last year and making sure Potter noticed him, then trying to drive a wedge between Potter and the Weasley girl. At the beginning of this year, however, Dumbledore had given him a new mission-he was to help drive a wedge between Potter and his new fiancé, Draco Malfoy. If he succeeded, the Savior of the wizarding world would be bound to him and his fathers debt would be cancelled, and he would also get to witness the humiliation of Draco Malfoy. It had seemed like a simple thing-after all, Potter and Malfoy had been enemies for near to six years, the brunet couldn't have forgiven him so quickly. Unfortunately, Potter was so wrapped up in Malfoy that Zacharias never even had a chance to talk to him.

Then, Dumbledore came up with a new plan-a potion that would make Potter believe the two of them, and allow them to turn him away from Malfoy. Once they had Potter's agreement Dumbledore would be able to break the bond between the Gryffindor and Slytherin, and Potter would instead be bound to Zacharias. When it was time for Potter to face down Lord Voldemort he would defeat the dark wizard and then die, leaving all his money and inheritance to Zacharias. It was a foolproof plan, only turns out it actually wasn't foolproof. Seems that the bond between Potter and Malfoy was stronger than he and Dumbledore believed, and when he tried to interfere…well, he wound up bound and helpless with a furious Dumbledore pacing in front of him.

"It is highly unlikely that we will be able to get between Potter and Malfoy again," Dumbledore announced suddenly, "Somehow their bond is much stronger than it should be, and it will only break when one of them dies. How would you like to have the Malfoy boy bound to you instead?" With a wave of his hand the silver chains fell from Zacharias' body and the blond sat up slowly, eyes trained on the headmaster.

"That would be acceptable," he agreed hesitantly, still expecting some punishment for his failure, "You have a new plan then?"

"Of course," Dumbledore gave him a small smile, "Potter must die in order for Voldemort to be defeated, and once he is gone Draco will be vulnerable. I will plan out Potter's final encounter with Voldemort, and ensure that you are near the Malfoy boy to take advantage of the situation. We will need some more of that potion so you can infilitrate the Slytherins…first though, I need to make sure that I am proclaimed innocent."

"I'll tell them that it was Lucius Malfoy who put me up to it," Zacharias offered, "I can tell them I was under the Imperio, and that I saw him curse you before forcing me to help him try to separate Harry and Draco."

"Yes," Dumbledore nodded, "I must return to my office soon and allow them to find me injured; we will have to make it seem as if Lucius attacked you as well, my boy. Are you prepared?" Zacharias wanted to protest, but knew it wouldn't do him any good, and so he braced himself for what he knew was coming before giving Dumbledore a small nod. "Excellent," Dumbledore said cheerfully, "Crucio."

The pain…the pain was intense, and Zacharias cried out as he writhed on the floor. He felt a brief sense of relief as the curse was lifted, but he barely had time to gasp in a breath of air before he was writhing again; Zacharias wasn't sure how long it lasted or how many times the curse was cast, but when he felt darkness envelop him he gave in with a sense of relief…

"Well?" Sirius asked quietly, "Were you able to sense anything?"

"Nothing of use," Severus replied, "The village attacked could have been on the other side of London for all we know; all the Muggle activity in the city makes it difficult to sense magic unless it is nearby." Sirius and Severus were currently sitting in a Muggle all-night café, after spending two hours traveling across the city to try and find a trace of the village Voldemort had attacked over the weekend. The café was Sirius' idea, and Severus only reluctantly agreed to rest because it would provide them with a better chance to discuss their search. Once they had received their orders-Sirius had a mocha latte, rolling his eyes when Severus sneered at the mound of whipped cream on top, while the potions master drank a strong herbal tea sweetened with a drop of honey-Severus had cast both a notice-me-not spell and Muffliato so they could be assured that their conversation was private.

"There is a family artifact that I could use to pinpoint areas where Dark Magic has been used recently," Sirius said, "Of course, I have no idea if it's still even at the house; the twins told me about Dunghead nicking my things." Sirius scowled at his drink before spooning off a good portion of the fluffy topping, which seemed to soothe his feelings a bit.

"Why don't you summon that…Kreacher and have him locate it?" Severus suggested, fighting back a sneer at the other mans childishness, "He obviously still has very strong ties to your family home and everything in it."

"Yes, but he hates me," Sirius pointed out, "He would most likely lie and say he can't find it."

"He likes Draco though," Severus mused, "If only he were here, or we had some polyjuice potion. You can contact Narcissa; Kreacher will listen to her."

"Actually, I have an idea," Sirius grinned suddenly, "This spell will make sure the Muggles don't notice anything we do?"

"Of course," Severus arched his eyebrow, "What did you have in mind?"

"Kreacher!" Sirius called by way of a response, and seconds later the ancient house elf appeared, round eyes wider than ever as he saw Sirius.

"Mistresses ungrateful brat is alive!" Sirius was surprised to detect a faint note of relief in Kreacher's voice before the elf continued, "Kreacher is thinking Master is never being back; house is being full of blood traitors and Mud-"

"Enough, Kreacher," Sirius interrupted, "Yes, I am alive, and I need your help. I am going to make Dumbledore and his followers leave the Manor, and I was informed that someone has been stealing items that belong to our family."

"He is being sneaky, blood traitor," Kreacher replied, "Kreacher is knowing how to find everything belonging to Noble House of Black; Master is wanting Kreacher to find?"

"Yes," Sirius nodded, "I want to reclaim everything that belongs to the House of Black, starting with the Dark Arts Locator. I need you to find that and bring it to me; if the person who has it has any more of my belongings take those as well and protect them at the manor."

"Master is having family pride," Kreacher said approvingly, not seeming the slightest bit insane, "Kreacher is being back soon with Locator." Kreacher vanished with a "pop", leaving Sirius and Severus to stare at each other in astonishment.

"Well, that was not difficult at all," Severus commented, "It appears that the elf does not despise you as he once did."

"It will definitely make things easier," Sirius replied, "Maybe everyone else was right all along; maybe he _would_ be more willing to listen to me…"

"Kreacher is having it!" the house elf reappeared, and Sirius noted that he looked cleaner than before-like he had cleaned his towel; "Dung Fletch is having it; Kreacher is taking it and bringing it to Master. Dung Fletch has stolen much and Kreacher is taking it back."

"Good job," Sirius praised him, taking the small black box, "I take back my previous orders in regards to the Order of the Phoenix; you no longer have to listen to anyone other than myself, Harry Potter, Draco and Narcissa Malfoy and Severus here. If you see anyone stealing from me or damaging the house you have my permission to stop them using any means necessary."

"Kreacher is also finding Dung Fletch with this," Kreacher held out an ancient locket with the Slytherin crest on it; "Was given to Kreacher by Master Regulus; Master said to destroy, but Kreacher failed…Kreacher punished himself many times, and many more when necklace gone."

"Well, no more," Sirius commanded, sharing a triumphant look with Severus before the dour man scowled and looked away, "We can destroy it now, and honor my brothers wishes. We need to keep it somewhere safe until we can destroy it; any suggestions Sev?"

"Yes," Severus narrowed his eyes at him, "I suggest you stop calling me Sev; it is bad enough when the brats do it. As for the locket-have Kreacher take it to Narcissa and ask her to safeguard it in the Realm until we are ready to take care of it."

"Wow! A good idea-for once," Sirius smirked at the other man before turning to the house elf who had been waiting silently for a decision to be made; "Take the locket to Narcissa Malfoy and ask her to place it in a safe place. Once you are done with that you may return to the manor and begin getting it back in its original state; when I have a chance I will hire a couple of other house elves to help you."

"Thank you Master," Kreacher bowed so low that his nose touched the ground, "Master is being most gracious, and a credit to his family. Master will be making Mistress proud. Kreacher is not failing!" With a soft pop Kreacher was gone, leaving the two wizards alone once again.

"It seems the house elf is not as insane as I previously believed," Severus noted, "I wonder how this change came about…but that is not of importance at the moment. You have the artifact; how does it work?"

"How does all ancient Pure Blood magic work?" Sirius asked wryly as he opened the box to reveal a small silver device rather like a compass, "I place a drop of blood on the needle while thinking about what I need to find, and the Dark Magic Locator will show us the most likely place to look. We need to get to one of the parks; it will be easier to follow the trail that way."

"Then we should go," Severus stood and dissolved the concealment spells once Sirius had put the Locator away, "I know of a park we can go to; it is near where I grew up. Come along, Mutt."

"Slimy Snake," Sirius muttered as he followed Severus out of the café and into a deserted alley; "Where exactly are we going?"

"I shall apparate us," Severus replied, "It seems safer than giving you the coordinates, what with your propensity for getting into trouble. I trust you remember how to side-along?"

"Is this really necessary?" Sirius pouted, "I don't get into that much trouble!" Severus arched his eyebrow, and Sirius gave in, albeit with a few choice words muttered under his breath. "Fine," he scowled, "Which arm?"

"Left," Severus held out his arm and, after a moments hesitation, Sirius sent him a wicked grin and wrapped himself tightly around the potions master, deciding to have a little fun.

"Oh, Sevvy," he said in a simpering voice, "You will be careful, won't you? Side-along always makes me so-ah!" Sirius shouted as Severus turned and apparated without giving him any warning; when they landed Sirius really did have to cling to him for a moment, as he felt slightly lightheaded.

"Oh, are you alright?" Severus asked lightly, "I hope you weren't too badly frightened; no body parts missing?" He looked down at the slightly shorter-by a mere inch-man, and was startled by his appearance. Sirius' grey eyes were wide, his cheeks were flushed, and his slightly parted as he took shallow breaths; in short, the dog animagus looked extremely kissable-which was a thought that Severus quickly pushed away as something he was unprepared to deal with.

"No; I'm fine," Sirius replied, letting go of Severus' arm, "Just knocked the wind out of me." He glared up that the other man; "When we get back I'm telling Harry you tried to kill me; see if he still wants to be part of your family then, Sevvy!"

"I will simply tell him that his godfather was acting like a girl," Severus replied smoothly as he looked around, "If I hex you again it will not deter you from calling me Sevvy, will it Mutt?"

"Nope," Sirius grinned, "So you might as well let it go."

"I will simply have to find another detterent," Severus said, "In the meantime, perhaps we should use that device of yours."

"Sure, change the subject," Sirius laughed, "Put up the concealment charms again?" Severus scowled but complied and then watched with interest as Sirius removed the Locator. Sirius opened the clear glass dome covering the needle and then pressed his finger tip to the sharp end, allowing a few drops of blood to fall onto the device before closing the dome. He closed his eyes in concentration and Severus could see the needle spinning around quickly before it suddenly stopped and pointed straight up.

"We need to apparate," Sirius said softly, "Severus-hold onto my arm."

"Do not splinch me, Mutt," was Severus' only comment as he gripped tightly to Sirius arm and prepared for the apparition. Moments later he felt the familiar constriction and when he opened his eyes he knew they had found the spot they were looking for.

**AN: Chapter is finally up! Very short, I know, and I'm sorry! I've got a lot going on in RL right now, so there will likely be a good bit of time between chapters, although I have started on the next one. I will update when I can, and I promise I will not abandon this story! Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and thank you to all my readers for sticking with me. Until next time!**


	34. Chapter 33

Severus was not a man of much faith, but as he looked around at the destruction they had found he couldn't help but send a silent prayer to Merlin that they would be able to defeat Voldemort once and for all-and soon. The small village they were standing in only had six homes in it; it was obviously a relatively new village, a place for mixed Muggle-Magical families to live without fear of prejudice. Unfortunately, the Dark Lord had managed to find them, and ultimately destroy what had most likely been a peaceful place to live.

"This-this is terrible," Sirius said softly as he looked around at the destruction surrounding them, "How could anyone…why hasn't anyone been here to clean up? The poor victims." A few feet in front of them lay the bodies of a small family-a man, a woman and a child of perhaps nine or ten. All three of them had looks of terror on their faces, but appeared otherwise unharmed.

"I am glad they were not tortured," Severus replied softly, "However, I cannot help but wonder _why_ they were not tortured; it does not fit the Death Eater M.O. Something is not right here Sirius."

"Nothing is right here," Sirius countered, "We should see if we can find out where the missing children may have lived; any ideas?"

"There are only six homes, so we shall need to check each of them," Severus said, "I believe in this instance we should remain together; there may be traps left behind, so we will take turns entering each house and each room." Rather than argue Sirius merely nodded his agreement and followed Severus to the first house, which was directly behind the unfortunate family. The house was in complete shambles-furniture over-turned, scorch marks on the walls and tiny glowing Dark Marks scattered across the ceiling in every room. Severus made sure to look at the photographs which were left on the walls, and saw that the three corpses they had found had lived here, and they were the only inhabitants.

"There's nothing in here," Sirius said once they had gone through the whole house, "And it looks like the whole family has been…accounted for."

"No missing child from this house," Severus agreed, "I wonder who the attackers were; I can't think of anyone in the ranks that would leave miniature Dark Marks on the ceiling. The purpose of leaving a Dark Mark behind is to draw attention to the scene and take credit for the destruction; if anything there should have been a Dark Mark outside, unless the ministry has already gotten rid of it."

"But why would they get rid of the Dark Mark and not…" Sirius trailed off as they walked outside again and saw the victims; "Why would they do that and not give these people a proper burial?"

"I don't know," Severus replied, "Hopefully Tonks will have some answers when Narcissa speaks to her later. Come Mutt; let's continue."

The two men walked quietly from house to house, taking note of the victims that they found and keeping track of the people shown in photographs in each house. They said little, merely observing any anomalies that they noticed. Two of the houses had portraits in them, and the wizards spoke with the distraught subjects to verify the identities of the victims they found; the more houses they searched the more suspicious they became, but neither spoke of their concerns, determined to wait until they had examined all of the homes. It was two hours before they finally finished examining the village, and both had come to the same startling conclusion.

"Severus," Sirius began as they stood at the edge of the village looking out into the nearby forest, "If the pictures we show everyone who lived in this village, I didn't count anyone missing, did you?"

"There were fifteen adults in the pictures," Severus replied, "Two of whom appeared to be grandparents, if the pictures are anything to go by. We found all of their bodies. In addition, there were twelve children pictured, all of whom were accounted for-there are actually two additional bodies, which points to visiting friends or family members. It does not appear that any children have gone missing from this village; the Death Eaters left no survivors and took no prisoners."

"Then why would Dumbledore-"

"We should not speak of this here," Severus interrupted him; he cast a quick tempus and saw that it was after midnight; "I do not believe we should trouble the others with this tonight. Where are you staying?"

"The twins offered to let me stay on their couch until I either cleared out Grimmauld Place or found somewhere else," Sirius replied, "I don't really want to wake them though."

"You may stay in my quarters," Severus offered, surprising even himself, "I gave Narcissa leave to stay in my extra room, however I can easily make room for you. We can talk once we return to the school; my chambers are safe from Dumbledore's spying."

"I-okay," Sirius was too startled to protest, "Apparate back to Hogsmeade?"

"There was a fireplace with floo powder in one of the houses," Severus replied, "We can floo directly to my rooms. First, however, I want to set up wards around this village; we should return tomorrow and cast the remembrance charm so we can discover what truly happened."

"Why not cast it now?" Sirius asked curiously, "After all, we're already here."

"Because I do not have the equipment necessary to record the memories," Severus informed him, "Come on Mutt; let's get out of here."

"Sure, Sevvy," Sirius replied; it was a mark of how much the situation was getting to Severus when the potions master merely glared at the dog animagus, not even bothering to send a hex at him.

"You will pay for that later Mutt," Severus sneered before turning on his heel and stalking towards the house with the floo powder; Sirius stared after him for a moment, mesmerized by the way Severus' robes billowed out behind him before shaking his head to clear it as he ran to catch up.

Several minutes later the two men stepped out of the floo into Severus' study and they were surprised to see Narcissa sitting in a plush green arm chair reading a book.

"Cissa, why are you still awake?" Sirius questioned, sitting on the small couch across from his cousin, "Has anything else happened?"

"Nothing of note," Narcissa replied with a small smile, "I wanted to wait up and see what you two found out about the missing children; I just spoke to Filius an hour or so ago and Dumbledore is still missing. The minister is insisting that Dumbledore must be injured and trapped in his office, and Minerva is still missing as well. Did you find anything useful?"

"We found the village," Severus said, sitting down on the opposite end of the couch from Sirius, "And we examined every house, counted the people in the family photographs, and matched them up to the bodies we found-"

"The bodies were still there?" Narcissa interrupted, the disgust showing in her eyes, "The attack happened over forty-eight hours ago!"

"The bodies were left where they fell," Sirius told her, grey eyes flashing angrily, "It shows that the ministry has no respect for the victims. I suppose it helped us in the end though, because we were able to match the victims to the family photographs and see who was missing." He paused for a moment before continuing; "Everyone was accounted for Cissa; we could find no evidence of missing children."

"Two of the homes had portraits in them and I even spoke to the subjects," Severus added, "After describing the victims we found they confirmed that all the inhabitants were accounted for."

"This makes no sense," Narcissa frowned, "Why would the ministry report that there were missing children if it is not true? What could be the purpose?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Severus arched his eyebrow, "It was a set up for Harry. I am not certain yet who was behind the attack, but I am certain Dumbledore decided to take advantage of it. Dumbledore must have known that the chances of his plan to separate the boys was unlikely to work, so I believe he altered some of the information to set a trap for Harry; he most likely planned to make Harry feel responsible for those children and then send him on a suicide mission to rescue them from the Dark Lord. If he is unable to control Harry, he would rather have him out of the way."

"When I get my hands on that sneaky, underhanded slimy bastard-" Sirius growled as he got to his feet, pacing in front of the fireplace, "That dirty, under-handed old coot will die a slow and painful death-"

"Yes, we all agree," Severus interrupted, scowling at the other man, "Now either contribute something useful or sit down and shut up, idiotic Gryffindor Mutt."

"What did you call me?" Sirius rounded on the other man, growling as Severus merely watched him with narrowed eyes.

"You heard me," Severus returned, "You are acting like a child, making vague threats yet not even attempting to come up with an actual plan of action; trying to get killed again so soon Black?"

"Stand up and say that to my face, Snivellus," Sirius demanded, stalking towards the couch as Severus got to his feet.

"Now gentlemen-" Narcissa began, getting to her feet as well, but she was ignored.

"You are no better than a child," Severus repeated, sneering at the other man; he walked forward, meeting Sirius halfway, "You are irresponsible, and you are going to get either yourself or Harry killed by your reckless behavior, and I will not allow it. Harry is my nephew, and he is betrothed to my godson; he is family now and I will not allow your recklessness to put him in danger again."

"I would never put Harry in danger," Sirius growled, shoving Severus, "Harry is my godson; I love him as if he were my own son, and I would never do anything to hurt him!" He pushed Severus again, and then blinked when he found a wand pointed between his eyes.

"And yet you have hurt him," Severus spoke in a silky, dangerous voice that made Sirius shiver, and not completely from fear, "You have hurt him and placed him in danger numerous times; he lived with abusive Muggles because you were so set on revenge that you didn't stop to think about his well-being, you encouraged his reckless behavior over the past few years, and at the end of last year he went to the ministry to rescue you. He nearly died that day, and then again this weekend when _you left him in the veil_!"

"Shut up!" Sirius shouted, as his magic burst forth and pushed Severus away from him; there was an expression of shock on the potions masters face as he fell backwards onto the floor, just missing hitting his head on the coffee table. He pulled himself into a sitting position, but remained on the floor as he looked up at the angry animagus; Sirius' silver eyes were dark with anger and self-loathing as he continued;

"You think I don't know this Snivellus?! I know I have been a lousy godfather! I allowed Harry to put himself in danger for me time and again, and I know how close I came to losing him! You think I don't know! I hate that I've caused him so much pain! I never asked for him to come after me in the veil; I never wanted that…he should have left me there!" He glared down at Severus; "Why did you let him come after me Snivellus? You said yourself all I do is put him in danger!" He lowered his voice and turned away; "You should have stopped him; you never should have let them come after me."

Severus carefully climbed to his feet and slowly approached the other man, feeling pangs of guilt for the pain he had caused him; he had only said what he always did, venting his anger at Sirius in the familiar manner. He had never expected the animagus to take his words to heart, much less agree with him! Severus noticed Narcissa standing to the side, hands on her hips as she glared at him, clearly telling him to fix this at once.

"Stupid Mutt," Severus said softly, coming to a stop just behind Sirius, "Of course I let Harry rescue you; have you seen the amount of power he and Draco possess? Denying him the chance to bring you back would have been the same as asking to die a slow and painful death." He took another half-step forward and placed a hand on Sirius' shoulder, turning the unresponsive animagus around to face him; he was startled to see the normally passionate grey eyes dull and lifeless.

"Stop your sulking Mutt," Severus sneered, "Harry loves you; until we discovered our relationship you were the only family he had left. He would always risk his life for you, and willingly; do not doubt your importance to him."

"No, I'm worthless," Sirius shook his head desolately, "All I do is cause trouble and-" Severus' scowl deepened, but Sirius was so intent at staring at the floor that he didn't notice. Without giving it any thought Severus pushed the other man against the wall, causing Sirius to look up at him with startled grey eyes. "Wha-?" He didn't get to finish, as Severus gripped the back of his neck and pulled Sirius closer to press their lips together in a harsh kiss. Sirius was too stunned to do anything but stand there, and after a moment the dark-haired Slytherin pulled away to smirk at him.

"Of course all you do is cause trouble," he said, "And you revel in it; don't pretend you don't, insolent mutt."

"Stop calling me a mutt," Sirius said weakly, but he did manage to glare at the potions master, which caused Severus' smirk to grow, resulting in Sirius intensifying his glare; "And what the hell was all that about Snivellus? When you-just now you…well, you know what you did!"

"Yes, but if you don't know what it was then perhaps I should demonstrate again," Severus leaned in again; Sirius placed a hand on his chest to stop the Slytherin from getting any closer, but it didn't deter the potions master in the slightest and soon he found warms lips pressed against his once again. Sirius voiced muffled protests, but Severus persisted and soon the animagus gave in, reciprocating the kiss and allowing Severus to plunder his mouth. Neither man noticed when Narcissa silently moved out of the room, an approving smile on her face.

It was several minutes before the two men parted, both of their faces flushed. Severus was the first to speak.

Albus Dumbledore quietly returned to his office, careful not to set off any alarms as he was not ready to let anyone know he was back yet; he had a few details to attend to first. Albus had left Zacharias in the Shrieking Shack with a concealing charm so he would not be found yet either. He went over to his cabinet and pulled out a quill and parchment set, two bottles of potion and a single black hair. Waving his wand he summoned a pewter cauldron and set it up over a low-burning fire on his desk, combining the two potions vials with the black hair. After stirring it for several minutes and adding a few other ingredients he scooped a spoonful of the new potion into a crystal phial and set it aside. Albus sat down at his desk and pulled a bottle of ink out of the secret compartment; the ink was black and shimmered with spells.

After thinking for a moment Albus dipped his quill in the ink and began to write, careful not to smudge the ink. The scene he described was extremely detailed and took up four sheets of parchment; he had to make sure that there were no discrepancies. Satisfied with his work Albus spread all four parchments out side-by-side and carefully sprinkled the previously prepared potion over the words. After a few moments the words shimmered and then rose up off the parchment swirling in the air before disappearing in a flash reminiscent of lightning. Albus smiled-his new plan was set in motion and now it was just a matter of letting the right people find him so that he would be on hand when Harry received his newest vision…

_Voldemort walked through the elegant hallway, a small group of Death Eater's following him at a respectful distance. He came to the end of the hallway and stopped at a blank wall, where Bellatrix Lestrange and Walden MacNair stood waiting._

"_My Lord," MacNair bowed while Bellatrix sank into a deep curtsey, adoration plain in her gaze._

"_Is it ready?" Voldemort demanded._

"_Yes, My Lord," MacNair responded, straightening, "The changes have been made, and all is ready for the tests. The viewing window will activate once the room is occupied."_

"_Good," Voldemort said with a cold smile, "Bring in the eldest; Rabastan will administer the test." While he waited for his command to be carried out, Voldemort occupied himself with conjuring a chair-more like a throne-so that he could watch the upcoming test. In just a few minutes the wall in front of them became transparent and a small boy, no more than eight years old stumbled in, a wand gripped tightly in his hand. The boy had brown hair and wide blue eyes; his clothes were torn and dirty, and he had tear tracks running down his cheeks._

"_Please," the boy whispered, looking straight through the glass, although avoiding looking directly at Voldemort, "Let me go please; I want my mum."_

"_You have been honored boy," MacNair said, "The Dark Lord has chosen to offer you a chance that grown wizards would kill for. Bellatrix has been teaching you a spell-do you remember it?"_

"_Y-yes," the boy said hesitantly, "But it's a bad spell; Mum and Dad said-"_

"_Your mother and father were lied to, my child," Voldemort said, attempting to placate the boy, "There is no good and bad-only power. You have power, and I will help you to harness it. Pass my test, and I shall help you to be great."_

"_I want to go home!" the boy protested._

"_You will do as the Dark Lord says," Bellatrix threatened, "You don't want baby sissy hurt, do you?" The boy shook his head quickly, and Bellatrix smiled, a sickly sweet smile; "May we bring in the test, My Lord?"_

"_Yes; begin." A whispered spell and moments later a large cage appeared in the room; the cage was separated into two sections-in one there was a small brown-haired girl approximately two years old, obviously the boys little sister, cowering in the corner and crying. In the other section of the cage was a man, dirty and ragged, with vacant eyes._

"_Lissa!" the boy cried, running up to the cage-_

"_Stop," Voldemort commanded, and the boy froze, "You will use the curse Bellatrix taught you on this man, and then we shall release your sister."_

"_Remember what Auntie Bella taught you," Bellatrix cooed, "Make Auntie proud, little Brucey." The boy-Bruce-looked at her with frightened eyes before looking at the man and raising the wand._

"_Cru-crucio," he said in a trembling voice, but the man didn't so much as flinch._

"_What did I tell you?" Bellatrix demanded, "You have to mean it! Again!"_

"_Crucio!" the curse once again had no effect, but now the vacant expression had faded from the man's face and he focused on Lissa, his eyes taking on a predatory gleam._

"_This is your last chance," MacNair warned, "That man enjoys hurting little girls; if you do not succeed we will remove the glass separating him from your sister."_

"_No!" Bruce said, "Crucio! Crucio! Crucio!" The curse hit the man, but it was lacking in power and he just shook it off as he moved closer to the glass separating him from Lissa; when he touched the glass it vanished and he flashed an evil smile as he approached the girl who had not stopped sobbing._

"_Leave her alone!" Bruce cried as the man reached out a hand to touch Lissa's hair; "Crucio!" The curse hit this time, and the man fell to his knees screaming; the curse only lasted seconds, but that seemed to satisfy Voldemort._

"_Release the girl," he commanded, and the cage was magically re-sized so that only the man was still inside._

"_Lissa!" Bruce ran to his sister, openly crying as he hugged her close._

"_Bruce! Mama! Daddy!" the girl sobbed; "Please; scared!"_

"_You have one more test," Voldemort announced, "As punishment for failing to use the curse properly the first time, you will cast it upon your sister."_

"_No!" Bruce cried, "Please no; I'll be better, I promise!"_

"_You will curse her or I will give her to the werewolves," Voldemort informed him, "Do it now." Bruce was sobbing as hard as his sister now, but he none-the-less tried to gently push her away. Lissa refused to cooperate however, clinging tightly to her brother. Bruce finally had to shove her, and the toddler looked up at him with wide eyes, obviously hurt by the rejection._

"_Cru-Cru…I can't!" Bruce said, "Please don't make me!"_

"_This is a weakness you will overcome or your sister will pay the price," Voldemort said, "Do it now, boy."_

"_Cr-Crucio!" Bruce pointed a shaking wand at his sister, and the spell hit-_

Harry shot up in bed, panting heavily as he broke free of the vision. That was-that was worse than the vision about Bellatrix and Voldemort! To see a boy forced to torture his little sister…Harry started shaking with silent sobs, causing Draco to wake up.

"Wha-?" Draco asked sleepily before he noticed his distressed fiancé, "Harry? Harry love, what's wrong? Was it a nightmare?" Harry shook his head but was unable to reply; Draco sat up and pulled the dark-haired boy into his arms-Harry struggled at first, but quickly gave in, clutching tightly to Draco as he cried.

"I-I saw Voldemort," Harry said, "It was-he had the kids…the ones that were missing and-and there was a boy…his sister-he had to-crucio." Draco was appalled at what Harry said; even though the smaller boy was too distraught to speak clearly Draco could understand what he was saying.

"Come on," Draco commanded, "We're going to talk to Mother; she is staying in Severus' rooms, and Uncle Sev may be back by now too. Get up Lion." Harry allowed Draco to pull him out of the bed and get him dressed with a robe over his pajamas; Draco cast a warming charm on their feet so they wouldn't have to worry about shoes and quickly exited their rooms, Harry walking close to Draco for the warmth and support. They had only made it a few feet down the corridor when they ran into one of the last people they wanted to see.

"Mr. Potter-the headmaster wants you in his office," Filch said, "Come with me. Not you Malfoy-just him." Filch glared at the blond when Draco moved to stand beside Harry.

"Albus Dumbledore has attacked my fiancé-and myself-so he will not be going to the office alone," Draco said haughtily; "In fact, neither of us will be going until we can bring my mother or Professor Snape with us."

"Albus Dumbledore is still the headmaster," Filch glared, "and as students you have to listen; Dumbledore has given me permission to open the dungeons again, so if you don't do as your told I'll hang you by your thumbs and give you the lashing you deserve."

"Draco," Harry, who had calmed down slightly by now, "Don't-just go talk to Narcissa like we planned; I'll be okay." He held Draco's eyes with his own for a moment and the blond nodded, understanding the silent message-he would go get Narcissa and Severus and they would get to Dumbledore's office as soon as possible.

"Very well," Draco said, "Know this Filch-if anything happens to my fiancé I will hold you personally responsible. Be safe Harry." Draco gave him a chaste kiss before heading for Severus' rooms-he needed to get there quickly so that Harry would not have to spend much time with the headmaster. As he rounded the corner, Draco was caught off guard by a streak of red light and fell to the effects of a stunning spell…

The walk to Dumbledore's office was far too short in Harry's opinion; neither he nor Filch spoke and soon he was standing inside the headmaster's office.

"Harry my boy," Dumbledore said tiredly, looking pale and weak as he sat behind his desk, "Have a seat." He waited as Harry sat across from them and then continued; "Please forgive me, my boy; I am a little weak from Lucius' attack."

"Lucius didn't attack you," Harry said firmly, "Lucius Malfoy is…well, he's basically in prison because he tried to attack me after Draco and I became betrothed."

"Perhaps he escaped," Dumbledore countered, "Or it may have been another Death Eater using polyjuice potion; either way it seems that Voldemort is more determined than ever to get to you."

"I don't believe it was Voldemort," Harry said, "I know it was you; you invaded my mind and tried to break my bond. What do you want? I need to talk to Severus."

"I am sorry you don't trust me," Dumbledore said sadly, "But I can understand. I needed to warn you Harry-before he stunned me Lucius-or whoever the Death Eater was-mentioned that they had kidnapped several children and were planning to train them in the use of the dark arts; any who did not show talent for the dark arts would be used as sacrifices. He let slip a location, but we need to move quickly-"

"I'm not going anywhere with you," Harry stated, "I need someone with me I can trust."

"I am unable to go with you regardless," Dumbledore said tiredly, "My magic is exhausted from fighting the curse I was under, and I must be here when the ministry returns to speak to me. Anyone who goes will be in danger, so I cannot authorize any students to accompany you; if you would like to request Severus' assistance I have no objections."

"Then I'll do that," Harry said, getting to his feet, "Where does Voldemort have the kids?"

"At Malfoy Manor," Dumbledore replied, "Here are the coordinates so that you can apparate." Dumbledore held out a sheet of paper and Harry, unthinking, reached for it-but was distracted by the sound of a house elf popping in, accompanied by Severus.

"Do not touch that paper Harry," Severus said sternly, "It is a port key; I really must teach you to recognize magical energies…" The house elf disappeared unnoticed as Severus addressed his nephew.

"Sev!" Harry said in surprised, "Dumbledore knows where the kids are, we have to-"

"There are no missing children," Severus interrupted, giving the headmaster a black look, "Sirius and I located the village that was attacked, and there are no missing children." He hesitated for a moment before continuing in a softer voice, "All the inhabitants were dead Harry; there were no missing bodies."

"But that's-why would?" Harry looked at Dumbledore in confusion; he knew the headmaster wanted to break his bond to Draco, but why would he send him to face Voldemort un-prepared when there weren't even any children in danger? "I had a vision though," he told Severus, "I saw a little boy forced to Crucio his sister-why would I have that vision if it didn't happen? Voldemort wouldn't send me a vision like that; what would be the point?"

"Of course the vision was real," Dumbledore said, "Severus my boy, I'm afraid you are mistaken; there were certainly some children missing from the village. You have been working too hard-you just said you were with Sirius, but I am sure you meant Remus; as you know, Sirius is in the veil and there is no way to bring him back." He glanced at an instrument on his desk and his eyes widened but he called; "Come in!" The office door opened to reveal Draco, Narcissa and Sirius.

"I contacted the auror department and they are on their way," Narcissa said as she entered the room, "I'm glad to see you are still here, and safe Harry; Draco was worried."

"Well, he does have a knack for trouble," Draco pointed out as he took a chair next to Harry, scooting it over so that he could lay his hand on the other boys arm, "Has Severus told you that the vision is fake?"

"I don't understand how, or why," Harry told him, "Who would send me that vision?" He looked up at Severus who had drawn his wand and cast a type of diagnostic spell on him.

"A False Vision potion was used on you," Severus informed him, "The aurors should be able to track the magical signature-"

"Or I can do it," Sirius interrupted, "I was, after all, a trained auror."

"Sirius-I'm so glad we have you back," Dumbledore beamed at the animagus, but everyone saw that his usual annoying twinkle was gone; "However did you escape?"

"With the use of magic you know nothing about," Sirius replied, "If you'll cast the detection spell again Sev, I'll do the tracking spell." Severus nodded his agreement and the two spells were cast; no one was truly surprised when Dumbledore glowed with a faint red light.

"Why would you do that to me?" Harry demanded, "Haven't you done enough? You already trapped me in my mind and forced me to live through the cruciatus; I can't believe you!"

"Everything I do is for the Greater Good," Dumbledore said, "I cannot expect a mere child to understand-"

"Then perhaps you can explain it to the rest of us," Narcissa said pleasantly, "I'm sure Severus and Sirius would be interested to know your reasoning. First, however;" she turned to address Draco and Harry; "You boys have had a long day, and a trying night; why don't you return to bed and we will tell you what happens tomorrow?"

"I don't want-" Harry began, but stopped when Draco gently squeezed his arm.

"Come on Harry," Draco said softly, "Mother is right-it has been a long day; let's go to bed and we can worry about everything tomorrow, okay?"

"Well…I guess," Harry agreed reluctantly, "I really don't want to deal with the minister again already. Can we have a house elf take us back?"

"Of course," Draco said; he got to his feet and then pulled Harry up as well as he called for Dobby. Dobby was only too happy to help his new masters, and after bidding Narcissa, Severus and Sirius good night Dobby apparated them to their rooms. Before long the two boys were back in bed and-with the help of a light sleeping draught for Harry-fast asleep.

**AN: Sorry for the delay; my updates will likely be few and far between, but I am still working on this story and have no intention of abandoning it. Things will be winding down soon though-within the next few chapters I plan to have the confrontation with one of Harry's enemies-won't tell you which one though, as that would ruin the surprise! I know this chapter was a little choppy, but I hope you enjoyed it! Until next time!**


	35. Chapter 34

Harry stood in front of the mirror glaring at his unruly hair before turning and throwing the comb across the room.

"Problem Luv?" Draco drawled as he came out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around his waist and his platinum locks looking as perfect as ever. Harry blushed at the sight of his near-naked lover, but the blush quickly faded as the Slytherin picked up the comb and brought it back over.

"That comb is rubbish," Harry scowled, "My hair looks worse now than it did before I tried to fix it!"

"That is because your locks simply cannot be tamed," Draco said calmly, "Stop trying to fight your hair and it will cooperate much better. Here." Draco reached up and ran his fingers through Harry's dark locks for a few moments before stepping back with a nod. "Much better; now I'm going to get dressed, so don't mess it up." Harry stuck his tongue out at the Slytherin before moving out of the bedroom and down to the sitting area where Sirius was waiting.

"Draco's just finishing getting ready," Harry informed his godfather, who was lounging on the couch, "Sev isn't here yet?" He sat down in the chair across from Sirius and picked up a cup of tea that was charmed to stay warm.

"He is still in a meeting with the other heads of houses," Sirius replied, "They're taking a vote to determine the new headmaster; if they don't choose one before the end of the week the ministry gets to send someone in."

"Definitely don't want that," Harry said, "After the mess they made of things last year the last thing we need is their meddling." He started to run a hand through his hair but remembered Draco's admonishment and quickly clasped his hands in his lap; Sirius noticed the movement and smirked.

"Your hair actually looks like it's behaving today," the animagus commented, "I suppose Draco had something to do with this?"

"He told me not to touch it," Harry scowled.

"No, I told you not to mess it up," Draco corrected as he came down the stairs from the bedroom, "there is a difference. You shouldn't slouch so Cousin;" Draco turned his penetrating grey eyes on Sirius, "You'll muss your robes."

"Will not," Sirius retorted, glaring at his younger cousin, "I'll bet when I stand up my clothes are just as sleek and wrinkle-free as yours."

"Probably because Mother charmed them," Draco said drily.

"Did not," Sirius sounded petulant now, and he added rather sullenly, "Snivellus charmed them; said something about not letting me be an embarrassment to the family-interfering git."

"I'll thank you to not call my godfather by such names," Draco said, "Where is Severus by the way?"

"Staff meeting about a new headmaster," Harry replied, "I don't know if I want to do this; what if he tries something again?"

"Oh, I'm sure he will," Sirius said carelessly, ignoring the glare from Draco, "but he is surrounded by ministry officials, without his wand, and the magic-restricting chains will be used. Oh, plus Narcissa is there, setting up a containment circle; seems she doesn't trust the ministry to do things right."

"We wouldn't be going at all if it weren't for Mother setting up the additional wards," Draco said, "We should be safe Harry, but we shall all be on our guard. We need to leave shortly; Severus may just have to meet us there. Are you ready to go Harry? We can wait for Severus in the front hall."

"I guess," Harry said, standing and allowing Draco to link arms, "Come on Siri." The three made their way out of the boys' private suite and walked in silence towards the front hall.

It had been two weeks since Dumbledore had sent Harry the false vision, and today was to be his trial. Narcissa had managed to bind the now ex-headmaster using fae magic, and the minister allowed her to place wards around Dumbledore's holding cell in the ministry. Over the past two weeks solicitors representing Harry and Draco- as well a group of solicitors representing the wizarding world in general- had been putting together a case against Dumbledore. There were still numerous people who believed this was all a big mistake or that Harry was being influenced by the Malfoy's, but a surprising number of people were willing to believe the stories floating around, and even more were withholding judgment until after the trial. Going to classes and doing the extra training with Sirius and Severus-whenever they weren't off on secret missions-had helped keep Harry's mind off of Dumbledore, but today was the final day of the trial, which is why Harry, Draco, Severus and Sirius were attending; by the end of the day a verdict would be reached and Harry wanted to be there to see the conclusion.

"There you are," Severus was standing near the entrance when they walked up, "I thought I would have to send a house elf to summon you three; I suppose Black was holding you up again?"

"Why do you always blame me?" Sirius pouted, "I was dressed and ready; we were actually waiting for you."

"I told you that I would meet you here after the staff meeting," Severus pinned him with a hard stare, "Do you never listen to me, Insolent Mutt?"

"Not if I can help it," came the cheerful reply, "Oh look-it's McGonagall; haven't seen her for a few days." Harry turned his head and sure enough there was a grey tabby cat making its' way towards the Great Hall, probably for breakfast; the former Deputy Headmistress had taken her animagus form after revealing Dumbledore's plot to Narcissa, and she had yet to return to human form. She instead chose to prowl the halls, keeping an eye on the students although she refused to let anyone above second year come near her. The ministry had tried several times to force her out of the transformation, but she managed to elude them every time; Harry couldn't help but wonder what terrible secrets caused her to hide like that.

"Wonder how long she plans to stay like that?" Draco mused, watching as she disappeared amongst a throng of first years, "I can't believe McGonagall is so…cowardly."

"Minerva is not a coward," Severus corrected his godson sharply, "I do not agree with her actions as of late, but I can guarantee she is not a coward."

"Things are simpler in animal form," Sirius added, "She's probably trying to work through her feelings alone before facing everyone else."

"She didn't really do anything wrong though," Harry said, "I mean, she agreed with Dumbledore, but she didn't attack me or anything."

"That we know of," Draco pointed out, "and that's the whole point, isn't it? We have no idea what she did or didn't do, and we won't find out until she is ready to talk."

"We need to get going," Severus said, "Since Harry dislikes both Floo and port keys we must walk into Hogsmeade first and then apparate to a safe spot outside the ministry." They resumed walking and were soon out in the soft sunlight.

"Sure, blame it all on me," Harry pouted, "It's not like I'm trying to be difficult."

"No, that would be Draco's job," Sirius joked as they left the school, "It's in his blood."

"You should know Cousin," Draco returned, "After all, we do share the same blood. Still giving Severus a hard time?"

"Isn't he always?" Severus drawled, giving Sirius a heated look which the animagus promptly ignored.

"I have no idea what you two are talking about," he said airily, "I am behaving as I always do."

"Except for the fact that you blush whenever Sev accidently bumps into you," Harry said, and Sirius gave him a suspicious look which is godson returned innocently-too innocently. Sirius glared at Severus.

"What did you tell them?" he demanded, "I told you that I didn't want anyone to know about that kiss until-"

"Whoa-wait; kiss?" Harry interrupted, "What kiss? When? Why didn't you tell us?"

"Wait-you didn't know about the kiss?" Sirius looked at him in confusion, "But-just now you were teasing…"

"That is because you and Sev act a lot like Harry and I used to," Draco informed him, smirking at the animagus, "You should just stop denying it and see where it goes."

"Keep your advice to yourself brat," Severus ordered before Sirius had a chance to respond, "What Sirius and I do is none of your concern. Now, Draco shall side-along with me, while Harry goes with you Sirius. You two go first and we will be right behind you."

"Right," Sirius agreed, "Take hold of my arm Harry." Harry did as he was told and moments later he felt a slightly uncomfortable squeezing sensation before he and Sirius appeared in a deserted alley way. As soon as they landed Sirius pulled him to the side and a few seconds later Draco and Severus appeared.

"We will stay at the back of the courtroom," Severus instructed as they began walking towards the entrance to the ministry, "That is, of course, unless either Harry or Draco is called upon to testify-we shall all stay together just in case Dumbledore does have another plan."

"Harry and I both have our emergency port keys as well," Draco reminded him, touching his betrothal ring, "We will be careful."

"Don't make promises you can't keep Cousin," Sirius said cheerfully, "Harry attracts trouble like kneazles to treasure."

"Hey! It's not my fault!" Harry protested, "My dad and godfather are both Marauder's!"

"True," Sirius conceded, "And you make us very proud Harry."

"Stop encouraging him," Severus said sharply, "I would like it if my nephew actually survived long enough to bond with Draco."

The group made their way into the ministry amicably bickering, and only fell silent when they came to the courtroom. Severus led the way inside with Harry behind him, followed by Draco and Sirius bringing up the rear. They sat at a bench near the doors and watched as the room slowly filled. After several minutes of waiting Scrimegeour came in, and then Dumbledore was lead in by a team of aurors. After he was secured in the chair, chains around his wrists and ankles, Narcissa entered and set up her own wards under the careful eyes of the nearby aurors. Once this had been taken care of Percy Weasley stood up to address the court.

"The Wizengamot is now in session," Percy said, pompous as ever, "Albus Dumbledore stands accused of…"

The session lasted several hours, with numerous witnesses-some for Dumbledore and others against-being called; Harry, Draco, Severus and Sirius were all called upon to give their testimony, as was Zacharias Smith. When the blond Hufflepuff was called forward Harry couldn't help but feel sorry for the boy; he was pale and thin from malnourishment, and he had a permanent twitch from being held under the Cruciatus. Smith had been found unconscious in the Shrieking Shack the day after Dumbledore's arrest and he'd already had his trial-he was expelled from Hogwarts and his family had to pay a hefty fine to Harry.

When everyone had their say the Wizengamot voted on Dumbledore's fate; when Scrimegeour declared that the majority had found Albus Dumbledore guilty of all crimes Harry breathed a sigh of relief, leaning into Draco for comfort. It took nearly another hour for the minister to pass sentencing; Dumbledore was sentenced to fifteen years in Azkaban, after which he was to be banned from Wizarding Britain for the remainder of his life. Severus was suspicious when-upon hearing his sentence-Dumbledore merely bowed his head in acceptance, not even bothering to protest; he wouldn't give up that easily, which meant he must have planned for this situation. Severus would have to make sure everyone stayed on alert.

"Only fifteen years?" Harry questioned, "I thought using an Unforgivable instantly got you a lifetime stay in Azkaban?" The four wizards had left after the conclusion of the trial and were now walking through Diagon Alley to a restaurant where they were to meet Narcissa for lunch.

"That is standard," Severus replied, "However sometimes the sentence can be reduced; in this situation the members of the Wizengamot felt that Dumbledore deserved a reduced sentence because of his previous services to the wizarding world."

"His past actions should not give him a free pass for what he has done so far this year," Draco protested, "Just because he killed Grindlewald it doesn't give him a right to use the Unforgivables or hurt Harry."

"I agree, but that's politics," Sirius said, "Dumbledore still has a lot of pull in the ministry, so we need to be careful and keep an eye out; I wouldn't put it past him to hire someone to do his dirty work for him."

"And here I thought you were completely lacking in common sense," Severus drawled, "It seems you do have a brain after all."

"So what you're saying is that it isn't over yet," Harry spoke up before Sirius and Severus could get into another argument, "And I still have to worry about Dumbles and Voldie."

"Well, yeah," Sirius said, "but hopefully not for too much longer; Severus and I have made a lot of progress over the last two weeks and-"

"We shouldn't talk about it out in the open," Severus interrupted, "Wait until we get to the restaurant and set up a silencing charm."

"I wasn't going to say anything important!" Sirius glared, "I was just going to say that we should be able to make a move soon!"

"And you don't think that we should keep quiet about such information?" Severus arched an eyebrow, "Really Mutt, your lack of intelligence is astounding."

"I wonder if they're going to kiss again," Harry mock-whispered to Draco, "What do you think?"

"I don't think Severus would do something like that in public," came Draco's loudly whispered reply, "And I really don't want to see it." The two boys had slowed down a bit so that they were walking behind their chaperones; they continued their whispered conversation, but took care to make sure that their voices carried so that the two men could hear them.

"Sirius might do it in public though," Harry pointed out, "It just depends on who is the instigator. I think it's Siri."

"You are insane, Lion," Draco argued, "Severus is quite clearly dominant; he would never allow Sirius to man-handle him in public."

"But you'd let me kiss you right now if I wanted to," Harry said.

"Of course," Draco agreed, "but we are young and it's expected of us; plus, I can't get enough of your-" Harry came to a sudden stop forcing Draco-who had linked arms with him once again-to stop as well, and then he pressed his lips to the blond's so he couldn't finish his sentence.

"That will be quite enough," came Severus' soft voice, "I will have you know that what Sirius and I do is none of your business. Also," he waited until the boys had stopped kissing and were looking at him to continue, "I am most assuredly the dominant, although Sirius is the instigator. Now come along; Narcissa is waiting." Severus turned on his heel, robes billowing out behind him, and continued on down the street, ignoring the stuttering Sirius who quickly ran after him, protesting the entire way. Harry and Draco laughed as they followed at a slower pace, and they were still smiling when they joined Narcissa at a private booth in the back of the restaurant she had chosen for lunch.

The group spoke of inconsequential things until after they had ordered; the way this restaurant was set up they simply placed their order for the entire meal-appetizers to desserts-and then when they finished one course the next would automatically replace it. Their drinks also had automatic re-filling charms on them, so they didn't have to worry about a server accidentally hearing anything; once their orders were placed Narcissa and Severus set up privacy wards so that they could talk freely.

"So, I know you boys have been wondering where Severus and I have been over the past couple of weeks," Sirius began, "but we didn't want to say anything until we had it all sorted out. We-"

"So you are dating then," Harry said with satisfaction, "I knew it! You didn't have to keep it a secret though." Sirius choked on his water, while Narcissa hid her giggles behind her hand.

"As you and Draco will not drop the subject, I suppose it is time to tell you the truth," Severus said, giving the boys a withering glare, "Sirius and I have spoken of our feelings for one another, and he has agreed to let me court him. Now, can we get back to the matter at hand? Continue Sirius."

"Er-thanks," Sirius said uncertainly, "As I was saying, for the past two weeks we have been going over the list of horcruxes Luna made for us, and we have managed to destroy all but two-Nagini and the one inside Harry; the one in Harry will, of course, be destroyed by Halloween, at which point we can begin planning out our attack on Voldie."

"Sounds great," Harry beamed, "I can't wait to get this thing out of me! And once Voldie is gone we can figure out a way to keep Dumbles from messing with us again."

"Well, he won't be able to bother us in the realm," Draco pointed out reasonably, "So once school is done we can always spend time there for a while until we figure things out."

"A magical restraining order should help," Narcissa suggested, "I already submitted the paperwork, so when he is eventually released he will not be able to get within two hundred yards of you. I spoke with  
>Tonks yesterday, and she finally heard back from Remus." Harry perked up at that; no one had heard from Remus since he went out to try and find Dumbledore over two weeks ago. "He didn't contact us before because he discovered a secret pack of werewolves during his search for Dumbledore, and he was trying to integrate himself with the pack, discover their allegiance; they have decided to remain neutral in the upcoming battle so they will be of no help to us, but neither will they assist the Dark-Voldemort. Remus is currently with my niece recuperating; he has also proposed to her."<p>

"About time!" Sirius laughed, "I was wondering if he'd ever get up the nerve to ask her; it's obvious to anyone with eyes that Tonks is in love with him, but Moony always has been slow when it comes to girls. Speaking of which, I think you two should have your bonding ceremony at Christmas."

"But then we won't be able to go on a honeymoon," Draco protested, "If we bond after school lets out we can take an extended honeymoon before we have to return for our Seventh Year."

"Which is something else we wish to speak to you about," Severus said, "With the extra training you and Harry have been doing you are far ahead in your studies, as are most of your friends-even Longbottom has begun doing Seventh Year work in some subjects-and I believe it would be beneficial for you to take your NEWTs this year. If you pass your NEWTs you will be able to return to the realm and prepare for the final battle there; you may even be able to catch…Tom off guard."

"Why don't you ever say his name?" Harry questioned.

"Because I bear his mark," Severus replied, "If I were to say his name the mark would burn me."

"Oh," Harry was quiet for a moment, then, "I'm okay with taking our NEWTs this year, Dray?"

"I agree," Draco nodded, "Taking our NEWTs early would be beneficial. Cousin, why do you want us to bond during the holidays?"

"Because both the Winter Solstice and the first day of the year are very magical days," Sirius replied, "Either day would lend more power to your bonding, and you can always take a few days off after the bonding, and then have your real honeymoon during the summer."

"We will discuss it," Draco said, "Now, about Halloween…"

They discussed the process of removing Harry's horcrux, and then moved onto less stressful topics so that everyone was smiling by then end of lunch. That is, they were smiling until Scrimegour walked up to their table and made a motion indicating that he needed to speak with them.

"What brings you here Minister?" Narcissa inquired politely once the privacy ward had been lowered, "I would invite you to join us for lunch, but we were just about to leave."

"No matter," the minister brushed it aside, "I am here at the request of Albus Dumbledore." The table stiffened at this pronouncement, but Scrimegeour continued; "Albus Dumbledore has instructed me to give this to Harry Potter; he said that he has charmed it to give Mr. Potter the answers he needs." The minister pulled out a Golden Snitch and held it out to Harry, but Severus cast a summoning spell and set it down where he could examine it.

"After all that Albus has done to Harry I insist on checking this for spells first," Severus said, "It could be cursed, or it could be a port key set to activate only when Harry touches it."

"We-that is the ministry-already checked it for curses," Scrimegour protested, "and it is not possible to program a port key to activate for only one person."

"Of course it is," Sirius argued, "Parents have been giving their kids personalized port keys for generations now; all it requires is a bit of blood, and Dumbledore has had plenty of opportunity to store some of Harry's blood."

"It appears to be safe," Severus announced, tossing the Snitch to Harry who caught it without a thought, "Did Albus say anything about his…gift?"

"He said that it was a souvenir from Mr. Potter's first Quidditch game and that he should always remember that sometimes what we think is an accident is actually destiny."

"Thank you for bringing this to us Minster," Narcissa said, getting to her feet, "but we really must be getting the boys back to school now. Harry, Draco." The rest of the group got to their feet as well and followed Narcissa out to the apparition point.

"And it didn't do anything?" Pansy frowned, "I mean, when Potter caught it? It should have done something, if Dumbledore wanted the message to be one that only Harry could activate." The group had returned from their outing and were now in Severus' quarters with Ron, Hermione, Pansy and Blaise; Severus had refused to let anymore of the teenagers in his private rooms.

"Snitches have flesh memories," Hermione agreed, "When Harry touched it, it should have recognized him."

"Ah, but Mr. Potter did not catch his first snitch by hand, did you Harry?" Severus smirked at Harry, who grinned back.

"Nope," he said, "I caught my first snitch-"

"In his mouth," Draco finished, "I remember; he did that idiotic standing-on-his-broom-thing and nearly swallowed the damn thing. Sorry, Mother," he apologized before Narcissa could reprimand him for his language.

"Well, go on then," Ron encouraged, "Let's see what Dumbledore has to say for himself."

"Why?" Harry asked, "I mean, we all know it's going to be more lies, so why bother? Besides, I know Severus checked it, but what if he has something nasty hidden inside the snitch that Severus' detection spell didn't catch?"

"It is always best to be cautious," Severus agreed, "I will not deny that Albus knows more about certain types of magic than I do; it would be best to take precautions before Harry tries to open it. I think that everyone except for Narcissa, Draco, Sirius, myself-and of course Harry-should leave before we attempt to get the snitch open. No arguments Ms. Granger; you should wait ten minutes and then come back to check on us-this way you can summon Madame Pomfrey if something does happen." The four teens grumbled but reluctantly agreed.

"We won't be opening it just yet, however," Narcissa said, "We need to set up wards to protect against poisons and curses, as well as wards to prevent magical travel so that if there is a hidden port key it won't work. Severus, where should we set up the wards?"

"I believe the Room of Requirement would be best," Severus replied, "It should supply us with all we need. Harry and Draco can meet us there after dinner."

"Good," Blaise spoke up, "In the meantime, who's up for a quick pick-up game?" Harry and Draco readily agreed, while Hermione and Pansy shook their heads over the foolishness of boys. After promising to be at the Room of Requirement on time, the four teenagers took their leave.

**AN: New Chapter! Sorry about the long delay, but much has been going on, and I don't have regular internet access at the moment. Dumbles is dealt with for now-if you ignore his gift to Harry, that is- and horcruxes have been taken care of…for those of you who wanted to witness their destruction I apologize, but I didn't want to focus on things that had already been done in JKR's HP books. I have another chapter started and will get it posted ASAP, but I feel that I am starting to get to the end of this story; I have my plans for Voldie and Dumbles and the boys, and I don't think it will take too many more chapters to reach the conclusion. If there are any loose ends that you are concerned about let me know so that I can do my best to get them all tied up in a neat little bow. As always a big thanks goes out to all my reviewers; thanks for sticking with me! Until next time!**


	36. Chapter 35

"That was fun," Harry grinned as he and Draco returned to their rooms; "Did you see how well Neville played? He must have been practicing."

"Yes, he no longer resembles the blundering klutz we saw at our first flying lesson," Draco agreed, "Ow! What was that for?" He glared at Harry, who had lobbed a pillow at his head.

"He wasn't a blundering klutz," Harry defended his friend, "He was just self-conscious and intimidated; and then you made fun of him and took his remembrall!"

"Yes, and you immediately took off after me," Draco recalled, "You know, you never did get properly punished for that-you got a broom and a position on the Quidditch team instead."

"Well you never got punished either," Harry countered, "And you were the one who started it!"

"Ah, but I never got caught," Draco pointed out, "I don't know about you, but I am in dire need of a shower; join me?" Harry was caught off guard by the sudden change in topic but nodded and allowed his grinning fiancé to pull him into the bathroom where they quickly disposed of their clothing before stepping into the warm shower. Draco immediately pulled him in for a scorching kiss, before pulling away and grabbing a wash cloth.

"Here; let me," he said as he lathered it up; he started with Harry's hand, slowly rubbing the soapy cloth up his arm, across his shoulders and down the other arm. He then carefully washed his chest, paying attention the brunet's nipples until they were pebbled; he trailed the cloth down his stomach and then across his hips, ignoring Harry's straining member and smirking at the whimper he got.

"Draco," Harry whispered, "Please?"

"Not yet Luv," Draco said teasingly, "We have to get you all nice and clean first." Harry let out a groan of frustration and moved to touch his cock himself, but Draco quickly grabbed both of his wrists, "Uh-uh, Harry; none of that." Draco quickly attached Harry's wrists to the shower wall via magic, before giving his lover a wicked grin. "Do you remember the first time we showered together Lion?"

"Y-yes," Harry said breathily as Draco continued to caress him with light, teasing touches, "You tortured me before letting me…before letting me cum."

"It wasn't torture," Draco corrected, "It was punishment. I don't know about you, but I find myself feeling a bit nostalgic at the moment."

"What-" Harry frowned at him in confusion before catching on to what the blond meant, "No-Draco you can't mean-"

"Oh, but I do mean," Draco grinned up at him wickedly before doing his best to recreate that first moment of intimacy.

"Come along Harry; we're going to be late for dinner," Draco said as he ushered Harry out of their rooms.

"And whose fault is that?" Harry demanded, "You're the one who insisted on-oh, hello Luna." He broke off to greet the flighty Ravenclaw who had joined them; "How was your day?"

"Very well, thank you," Luna replied, "I haven't seen a single whifflehammer so far today; the blibbering humdingers have gone quiet as well, but I'm not sure yet whether or not I should be worried about it."

"Oh," Harry said, "That's-" He trailed off, uncertain how to reply.

"I'm sure it's nothing to worry about," Draco interjected smoothly, "Perhaps there is nothing of importance happening today and that is why they are quiet. If you still haven't heard from them by tomorrow I'm certain you know how to find them."

"That's true," Luna agreed, "I can ask Professor Sprout if she has any of the flowers they like." She tilted her head and eyed the two boys curiously before stating; "The nargles have been very active though-they seem to center around you and Harry; would you like me to make a repelling charm for you?"

"No thank you," Draco said politely, "We can deal with them just fine on our own; besides, the nargles seem to keep the cinnadoms away." Harry shook his head at Draco's reply, but Luna seemed to take him very seriously.

"Very true," Luna nodded solemnly, "If they do start to cause any serious discomfort let me know please. I must go find Hagrid and let him know to be on the look-out for snuffleflies; this is their mating season you know." Luna didn't wait for a reply but skipped away, leaving the two boys to shake their heads at her antics as they continued on to the Great Hall.

Dinner was uneventful except for the fact that McGonagall sat down at the end of the table Draco and Harry had created on the first day of school and proceeded to watch the two boys throughout. If anyone got too close to her the transformed teacher would quickly move away, only to return a few minutes later and resume her staring. Harry was unconcerned with McGonagall's behavior, but Draco finally got tired of it and used his wand to dump a bucket of water on the animagus, earning himself a look that clearly stated he would be losing house points and getting detention for his actions; Draco's only response was to sneer at the grey tabby cat until it walked away.

After dinner Harry and Ginny went back up to the rooms he shared with Draco to retrieve the snitch Dumbledore had gifted him, while Draco made his way to the Room of Requirement with the rest of their friends. Draco, Pansy, Theo and Hermione were once again discussing Draco's plan to conquer the wizarding world, only without Harry to tease they were actually discussing the serious aspects of it-such as which ministry members could be trusted, which laws needed to be changed and so on. Everyone was startled when Severus came out of the RoR with a scowl firmly in place.

"Why are you loitering in the hallway Draco?" Severus demanded, "We have been waiting twenty minutes. And where is Harry?"

"Twenty minutes?" Draco repeated, "That's not possible! Harry went to our rooms, along with Ginny, to retrieve the snitch Dumbledore gave him. It shouldn't have taken more than ten minutes for him to get it and return."

"I assure you that you and your groupies have been in the hallway for twenty minutes," Severus scowled then… "So Harry and Ginerva are taking longer than expected? Someone should go check on them." A soft "meow" caught everyone's attention and they looked at the end of the hallway just in time to see the grey tabby cat return to its natural form.

"Did you say Harry received a snitch from Albus?" the transfiguration teacher demanded.

"Yes," Severus replied, and McGonagall went pale, swaying on her feet.

"Dear Merlin!" she gasped, "I remember…Albus said…but I never imagined he would-!"

"Get a hold of yourself woman!" Severus snapped, eyes flashing dangerously as he advanced on his colleague; Minerva took a step back, only to bump into the Ron, Blaise and Neville who were all glaring at her. Draco stared a McGonagall for a moment but then decided he didn't want to wait for explanations; if her attitude was anything to go by his fiancé was in trouble-again!-and the thought of what Harry endured the last time he couldn't be found spurred him into motion. The blond Slytherin dropped all pretenses and ran towards the rooms he shared with Harry, vaguely aware of footsteps following him. Draco didn't look back and didn't slow down; any unsuspecting students that got in his way were roughly shoved aside; he had to get to Harry!

"You have five seconds to start talking," Severus said in his softest, most threatening voice as Draco ran off followed closely by Theo, Hermione and Luna, "If anything else happens to my nephew because you are trying to protect Dumbledore-"

"I-I don't know much," McGonagall said, "I just remember after Potter's first Quidditch game I went to speak to Albus about…something that is inconsequential at the moment, and he had Harry's snitch on his desk. I asked him if he would be giving the snitch to Harry as a memento, as is the tradition and he…he had this strange smile on his face. He said that Mr. Potter would indeed be getting the snitch back, but not until he was older and better able to appreciate it; he then said something along the lines of "This snitch will help Harry get to where he needs to be." At the time I simply thought he meant that the snitch represented Harry's talents and-"

"Foolish," Severus interrupted, "The snitch must be a portkey-Ms. Parkinson please enter the Room and advise Sirius and Narcissa of what we just learned; Mr. Zabini-go to my office and Floo the ministry to let them know that Professor McGonagall is ready to speak. Minerva-I would recommend you wait in the hospital wing. I am going to check on the boys." Severus snapped his instructions out quickly and was pleased to see that he was instantly obeyed; even McGonagall headed off to the hospital wing without any further prompting or arguments. Severus did not run as his godson had, but he moved swiftly through the corridors, the dark look on his face causing any students in the hall to quickly jump out of the way. He was aware of footsteps just behind him and was not surprised to see Ron and Neville following him. Nor was he surprised when a few moments later a large black dog barreled past everyone, his growls threatening enough to make the younger students scream as shouts of "The Grim!" "Oh no! It's the Grim!" "We're all doomed!" followed in his wake.

When he reached the painting of Merlin that concealed the entrance to the boys' room he found Sirius-now in his human form-growling at the old wizard to let them in.

"You do not have the password," Merlin said, "The little red-haired girl told me that Harry and Draco wished to have the password changed for their protection and that I was not to let anyone inside who does not have the new password. I will not betray my students."

"That's my godson in there!" Sirius yelled, "Open the damn door or else I will-"

"I understand you are doing your job," Severus began, interrupting the angry animagus, "However we have reason to believe that the children are in danger. Harry was given a…gift by the former headmaster and I was just informed that it is likely an illegal portkey. I must get inside to make sure they are all safe."

"Only the headmaster can order me to open without the password," Merlin said stubbornly, "I cannot let you inside." Ron and Sirius both began yelling at the portrait, while Severus prepared to throw a hex and Neville knew he needed to do something quickly before it got out of hand. If only they could apparate into the room…but no one had the ability to apparate inside of Hogwarts…except for…

"Dobby! Winky!" Neville's shout startled the others into silence as two house elves appeared, bowing low before him.

"Master Neville called?" Dobby asked.

"Boy is not Master!" Winky protested, "Has no right to call upon Winky as if he owns her! Winky obeys Master Harry and Draco!"

"They're in trouble!" Neville said hastily, "Or-at least we think they are. They went into their rooms with Ginny and Theo and no one has come out. Dumbledore gave Harry a gift, but we think it was a trap and we need to know if they are okay. Can you take Sirius and Professor Snape into the room to check on them, since they are Harry and Draco's guardians?"

"Masters in trouble?" Winky asked, "Winky is helping! Winky is taking Master Sev to help masters!" Winky grabbed Severus by the arm and apparated him into the rooms, followed closely by Dobby and Sirius.

"That was brill Nev," Ron congratulated him, "Calling Winky and Dobby! A great idea!"

"Yes, very well thought-out," Neville blushed at the compliment from Merlin, "I had no wish to keep the boys loved ones away, however I must obey the rules. Now, Harry and Draco have both been pre-occupied as of late, and the other portraits in this school have been telling me the wildest stories. Perhaps the two of you can clear things up?" Ron and Neville nodded and began filling the portrait in on what had been happening over the last several weeks.

"Do you really think that Dumbledore left a trick inside the snitch?" Ginny questioned as she followed Harry up to his and Draco's bedroom, "Isn't it more likely that he used it to leave a message for you?"

"Anything is possible Gin," Harry replied, "But after everything Dumbledore has done…I don't trust him enough to try and activate the snitch without some protections." Ginny was quiet for a moment as she watched him disable the wards around the box that he had placed the snitch in.

"What if it is dangerous?" She changed tactics, "Professor Snape said that Dumbledore knew more than him, so even with the protections he can put up its possible the thing will still be dangerous. Draco and Sirius could be hurt." Harry frowned; that thought hadn't occurred to him.

"I trust Sev and Narcissa to be able to keep everyone else safe," he said finally as he removed the snitch from its box, "As long as they can keep Draco away from me…maybe I should have him stay out of the room while we do this."

"He'll never listen," Ginny pointed out, "He would probably destroy the snitch before letting you kick him out of the room; he's grown very protective over you lately."

"Don't remind me," Harry rolled his eyes, "I can't go anywhere on my own, which I guess is why you came up here with me?"

"We haven't had a chance to talk much lately," Ginny shrugged, "Everyone has been so busy…I have been spending a lot of time with Blaise though; he's really nice."

"Has Ron given him the big brother talk yet?" Harry asked.

"Like I need Ron to protect me," Ginny returned, flipping her hair over her shoulder, "Anyway, back to the snitch-why don't you just activate it now? I can wait downstairs-that should be far enough away so that I don't get hurt if the thing is dangerous, but close enough so that I will be able to tell if you need help. Or, I could stay with you-I'm not afraid of a little danger."

"I would never forgive myself if you got hurt because of me Ginny," Harry replied, "I have thought about doing it alone-but what if whatever Dumbledore did to the snitch is really dangerous? It could affect the whole school if we don't have any wards set up." He shook his head, "No, I think it would be better to follow the original plan. Come one; let's go meet the others." Harry put the snitch in his pocket and left the bedroom, Ginny following close behind as he descended the staircase. They were about halfway down when Ginny let out a surprised cry and fell into Harry, knocking them both down the stairs. Harry fell hard, hitting his head on the railing a few times before coming to a stop on the floor where Ginny landed painfully on his stomach, knocking the wind out of him.

"Oh Harry!" Ginny cried, "I'm so sorry! I twisted my ankle on one of the steps and it made me lose by balance! Are you okay?" She quickly got off Harry and looked at him with wide, anxious eyes.

"Y-yeah," Harry said as slowly sat up, his hand going to his head, "Just-a little out of breath is all; and I have a slight headache, but I'll be fine. We should go-"

"No!" Ginny protested, "Wait a few minutes; if we take too long I'm sure Draco will come find us, but there is no reason why you can't sit still for a bit-at least until the world stops spinning."

"How did you know the world was spinning?" Harry asked her.

"Because you hit your head pretty hard there Harry," came the reply, "Hitting your head that hard is pretty much guaranteed to cause some dizziness. Come on; let's get you over to the couch." Ginny stood and offered Harry her hand which he waved away as he slowly got to his feet. He followed Ginny to the couch and saw that she was limping slightly.

"There are some healing potions in the cabinet over there," Harry said, pointing to a dark wooden cabinet against the far wall, "Want me to get something for your ankle?"

"No," Ginny refused, "You sit and I'll get the potions; you could probably use one for your head as well." She limped over to the cabinet and began searching through the vials.

"I'm fine Gin," Harry told her, "I've had worse."

"That doesn't mean you should suffer now," Ginny pointed out as she located a general pain reliever; she opened the vial and drank some, then smiled in relief as the pain from her swollen ankle faded. Ginny closed the cabinet and crossed back over to Harry, glaring at him until he accepted the potion with a roll of his eyes.

"There-happy?" he asked once he drank the potion.

"Ecstatic," Ginny deadpanned, "Now that we're all better we can go meet the others."

"Yeah, we've been gone a while now," Harry agreed, "We'll probably run into Draco in the hallway-I'm surprised he hasn't shown up yet." He rolled his eyes again and got to his feet, then checked his pocket to make sure the snitch was still there. To his surprise, the tiny object was warm; with a frown he pulled it out of his pocket and saw that it was glowing.

"Was it doing that before?" Ginny questioned, "Because I don't remember it glowing before."

"It didn't glow before," Harry murmured, "I wonder what caused it…"

"Put that down now!" Harry jumped as the portrait slammed open and Draco shouted at him; the blond didn't wait for him to comply, but ran over to Harry and slapped the snitch out of his hand.

"Dray? What's going on?" Harry asked in confusion, then he saw Theo, Hermione and Luna enter the room as well; "Theo? 'Mione?"

"Thank Merlin you're still here!" Draco said, "What in the world possessed you to take that thing out of its box? You were the one who said you didn't trust Dumbledore and it might be dangerous! Didn't you stop to think that perhaps it would be safer to leave it in the warded box until you reached the Room?" He took hold of Harry's arms and looked him over as he spoke, checking for any sign of injury.

"Well-I-no," Harry stammered, "I didn't think of that; I mean, I figured the snitch would only open if I put it to my mouth, so I didn't think it would be dangerous until then. I'm not hurt;" he said, pushing Draco's hands away with a scowl, "Nothing happened."

"Idiot Gryffindor," Draco scowled, "That thing is dangerous enough that McGonagall changed back to her human form to warn us about it!"

"Really?" Harry tilted his head curiously, "What did she say?"

"I didn't stick around long enough to find out," Draco snapped, "I was more worried with stopping you from doing something stupid. Now, let's get that thing put back in its box and go find Sev."

"Alright Dray," Harry agreed, "I'm sorry for worrying you." He placed a tentative hand on his fiancés arm and smiled when Draco covered it with his own for a moment before letting him go. Hermione walked towards the snitch, which had rolled over near the fireplace.

"No," the strangely hollow voice caused her to stop, and everyone looked around for its source.

"Theo?" Draco questioned, seeing the glazed look on his friends face, "What are you doing?"

"Only Potter can touch it," came the monotone reply, "Potter will take the snitch and Malfoy will change the password or the Mudblood dies." Theo pointed his wand at Hermione; the witch reached for her own wand, only to cry out as Theo sent a painful stinging hex her way. "You will not fight me or you shall die and Lovegood will be next. Write down a new password Malfoy and give it to Ginerva; she will give the new password to your portrait."

"Do it Draco," Harry said softly, "We can't let him hurt Hermione and Luna."

"Very well," Draco glared at his housemate before wandlessly summoning a quill and some parchment. He quickly wrote down a new password, making it one that Severus would hopefully be able to guess-Lion. He handed the parchment to Ginny, who cast a nervous look at Theo before heading for the entrance. As she opened the portrait Theo quickly whispered "Imperio" and forced Ginny to give the password to the portrait of Merlin before returning to the group and sitting down in a chair. As soon as she sat down the spell lifted and Ginny shook her head to clear it.

"You wanted to run," Theo said.

"Of course I wanted to run," Ginny shot back, "I would have gotten help since you've gone crazy." Theo nodded thoughtfully, and Draco thought he saw a hint of a twinkle in his eyes, but it quickly vanished.

"Crucio." Ginny cried out in pain as the curse hit her, but it was lifted after only a few seconds and then Theo sent a spell at Ginny and Hermione which knocked them unconscious. "There-that's two less people to cause problems," Theo said, and Draco could definitely sense a hint of amusement in his voice; "Not to worry-they are merely asleep. Now Potter-the snitch, if you please my boy." Draco grabbed Harry's arm and the brunet moved closer to him causing Theo to narrow his eyes. "Do not make me repeat myself or one of your friends will suffer."

"What will it do Dumbledore?" Harry asked as he walked towards the snitch with Draco-who refused to let go of his hand-following close behind.

"Ah yes, very clever Harry," Theo said approvingly, "How did you determine that I had possessed the boy instead of simply using Imperio?"

"I've had enough conversations with you to recognize you when you talk, even if it is through someone else," Harry replied, "Are you going to tell me what the snitch does?"

"It will take you to where you belong," Dumbledore replied, "Pick it up Harry; it won't activate from a mere touch." Harry sighed but picked up the snitch before facing Dumbledore with a look that said 'now what?'

"When we return Mother will make sure the wards on your cell keep your magic contained," Draco informed Dumbledore, "And you had better pray that you have not injured Theo."

"Don't forget the Rowan Fairies," Luna added as she stepped up beside Draco, "Harry will always be protected."

"You will not be accompanying Harry, Mr. Malfoy," Dumbledore said, obviously choosing to ignore Luna for the moment, "I have other plans for you. Accio Potter's wand!" Harry's wand flew towards Dumbledore, who seemed surprised that Harry didn't try to stop him.

"I don't really need a wand anymore," Harry shrugged.

"You cannot defeat Voldemort without a wand," Dumbledore told him, "However to use your wand would merely result in another impasse. Mr. Malfoy-perhaps you would loan Harry your wand? After all he has a greater need for it."

"I am not going to be separated from him," Draco sneered, tightening his hold on Harry, "If he needs a wand I will gladly lend it to him when the time comes."

"Why must children always be so stubborn?" Dumbledore sighed, then looked at the portrait in alarm; "Seems we are running out of time children; I had hoped you would be more cooperative, however I came prepared to do what I must." Dumbledore pointed his wand at the two boys and sent a blasting spell at their connected hands, causing them to let go as they were thrown against the far wall. Draco was immediately wrapped with bands of fire around his neck, wrists and ankles that had him crying out in agony.

"No! Stop!" Harry cried, turning to face Dumbledore with angry green eyes; he sent a burst of pure power at the old wizard-before remembering that Dumbledore was using his friend's body; not wanting to hurt Theo, Harry allowed the spell to dissipate.

"That's right," Dumbledore said, casting a circle to trap Harry, "Wouldn't want to hurt poor Theodore, now would we? Ms. Lovegood-perhaps you would lend Harry your wand?"

"Of course," Luna agreed readily, beaming at everyone in the room, "The blibbering humdingers have returned, and they were most informative." She reached through the ward and handed Harry her wand before looking at Draco; "The firefliers won't be happy with your treatment of Draco you know." Harry took a step towards his fiancé, but the ward flared up and prevented his leaving.

"Once Harry cooperates I will gladly remove the bands of fire from Mr. Malfoy," Dumbledore told her. "Now Harry-to activate the portkey you must hold it as you did when you caught the snitch during your first game. Don't worry my boy; I have put an anti-choking charm on the snitch so that you do not accidently swallow it. You should hurry; I don't think Mr. Malfoy can survive the fire much longer." Harry looked at Draco and started to move towards him, but Luna beat him to it, reaching straight through the ring of fire encircling Draco's neck to place her hand above his pulse; Draco's face was still screwed up in pain, but his screams quieted down.

"You swear to let him go if I do as you ask?" Harry demanded, and Dumbledore nodded his assent; "Okay, I'll do it but you have to let Draco go and stop possessing Theo."

"As soon as you have gone Draco will be free from my binding and I shall leave Theodore and your friends alone," Dumbledore assured him, "I know you are upset with me right now Harry, but you must understand everything I do is for the Greater Good."

"The Greater Good is a bunch of bull," Harry retorted, "It's nothing but a fairytale you told the wizarding world so that they will follow you; your lies have already been exposed Dumbledore and after I take care of Voldemort I'll make sure you can never hurt anyone again."

"Harry," the soft voice caught his attention and he looked over his shoulder to see that Luna had paled considerably; she still had one hand on Draco's pulse point and the other over his heart-Draco appeared to be unconscious, "I can't block it much longer; so much pain…"

"Luna-" Harry reached out a hand towards his friend and his unconscious fiancé, then remembered the wards trapping him, "Take care of him for me and tell him…tell him I promise I'll come back." Luna nodded and Harry turned back to face Dumbledore once again, but rather than say anything he simply raised the snitch and placed it in his mouth; as soon as the snitch touch his lips Harry felt the uncomfortable tug at his navel that was the portkey activating and he closed his eyes, dreading what he knew he would face next….

**AN: Another chapter up and we get closer to the end! I know it's a bit of a cliffhanger but…well, it was either this or make you wait another month or so for the chapter to get put up. I'm working on this as best I can, but it's slow going right now; work is driving me to exhaustion and I've been only having one day off a week. I'll continue to work on this story, and hopefully I'll have the next chapter-which I have started on-up soon. Thank you for all the reviews and thanks for sticking with me!**


	37. Chapter 36

Once the portkey activated, the bands of fire encircling Draco's limbs vanished and he collapsed on the floor with Luna holding onto his arms, speaking softly to him.

"Well, since Harry did as I asked I will keep my end of the bargain," Dumbledore said and with a wave of his wand Ginny and Hermione began to wake, "Do thank Theodore for accommodating me." The twinkle left Theo's eyes and he collapsed to the floor as well, looking rather confused.

"Draco?" He questioned, "What happened? I remember we were running here to check on Harry and then…everything is a blur."

"Dumbledore possessed you," Draco said, "He used you to cast an Imperio and Crucio on Ginny before putting her and Hermione to sleep. Then he cast fiendfyre bonds on me, and forced Harry to activate the portkey. We have to go after him!" He sat up with help from Luna and then checked on the other girls. "Are you alright Hermione? Ginny?"

"I'm fine," Hermione replied, shaking her head to clear it, "I feel a bit fuzzy, but other than that I'm okay."

"I'm sorry," Ginny said softly, "It's my fault; when Harry and I were coming downstairs I tripped and fell, and Harry hit his head pretty hard which is why it took us so long. Then I kept asking him questions about the snitch and-"

"This likely would have happened anyway," Draco interrupted her, "Dumbledore obviously had a backup plan in place, otherwise he never would have been able to possess Theo so quickly." He shot a look at his friend, who looked shell-shocked; "You should get rid of any candy and such that you have, or at least have it checked for spells and potions."

"I always check my food," Theo replied absently, "I think-it must have been a charm on my clothes or books…which means it has to be something I keep with me or touch often…"

"It's there," Luna pointed at Theo's feet, "Either your shoes or your socks. Dumbledore is in charge of the Fungus Freedom Conspiracy, which seeks to bring down its enemies through a treaty negotiated with foot fungi."

"Um…I don't have any foot fungus," Theo said, pulling off his shoes and socks, "See?" He was surprised when Hermione gasped and pointed at his foot. Looking down he didn't see anything unusual, just the golden phoenix tattoo which-wait a minute. "How the hell did that get there?" Theo demanded.

"Is it magic?" Ginny questioned as she and Hermione moved closer to look at it.

"I think so," Hermione said, "Somehow Dumbledore marked him; if Theo didn't agree to it though then it shouldn't have a strong hold and we can get it removed."

"Master Harry! Master Draco! Dobby and Winky is here! Is masters safe?" Everyone looked up in surprise as Winky and Dobby apparated in along with Severus and Sirius. Severus quickly swept the room with his gaze and immediately noticed who was missing.

"Harry?" he directed the question at Draco, who was still sitting on the floor with Luna stroking his hair.

"Gone," Draco replied shortly, "The snitch was a portkey. I need a potion that counters the effects of a fiendfyre binding so I can go after him."

"I have one in my room," Severus said, "If Dobby would go fetch it?"

"Yes, Master Sev!" Dobby readily agreed, quickly vanishing only to reappear a few moments later with the potion. "The potion takes half an hour to work," Severus informed his godson, "and during that time you will not have much strength. You need to go to the hospital wing while I try to figure out where the Dark Lord is; it is likely that Dumbledore set the portkey to locate the Dark Lord. Draco-can your house elves be dismissed?" Draco nodded, and Winky and Dobby popped out.

"Good," Sirius said, "I have my mirror, so when you figure out where Harry is let me know."

"And what will you be doing Mutt?"

"Teaching Dumbles a lesson about messing with my family," Sirius growled, "The dementors are obviously not doing their job, so I'll go take care of that-"

"Idiot mutt," Severus interrupted, "If you go to take care of Dumbledore then you have to return to Azkaban and the dementors will likely attack you-they don't care if you have a pardon from the ministry. Come help me locate Harry and we will come up with a plan of revenge later."

"Fine," Sirius huffed, "You going to take the potion or not Malfoy? If you aren't better by the time we locate Harry we aren't waiting for you." Draco glared at Sirius as he held out his hand for the potion.

"Watch it Black," he scowled, "You are not leaving me behind."

"Professor," Hermione called out, "Can you come check on Theo? He was possessed by Dumbledore, and he has a tattoo…" Severus quickly knelt down by Hermione and Theo and the three began conversing in low voices.

"Come on Draco," Ginny moved away from the small group looking at Theo's tattoo and offered Draco a hand up; he brushed it away and struggled to his feet, although he did allow Ginny to support him as he walked over to the couch, "Rest for a bit and then you can go help save Harry-again. We really need to do something about all this danger he attracts."

"There will be much less danger once we defeat Voldie and I kill Dumbles," Draco said as he drank the potion; as he set the empty bottle on the table Draco noticed a familiar wand lying on the ground. "Look-Dumbles dropped Harry's wand." Draco leaned over the edge of the couch to pick up the holly wand that no one else had noticed; before anyone could react Draco vanished.

"Narcissa is going to be pissed," everyone looked at Luna with wide eyes, and she looked back at them innocently, "That's what the blibbering humdingers told me."

"Fucking Hell," Sirius growled, "The wand must have been another portkey set up by Dumbles-do you think he sent Draco and Harry to the same place?"

"He is hoping to break the bond," Luna said in a faraway voice, "If the one with the power the Dark Lord knows not fails the bond shall break. The pawn shall bind the Chosen One's chosen and use his power to free the True Menace. The worlds will be combined and torn asunder and magic will become the victim."

"Umm…Luna?" Ginny said hesitantly, and the Ravenclaw looked at her with wide grey eyes, "What was that?"

"The blibbering humdingers gave me that message earlier," Luna replied, "They said I would know when to pass it on. I hope it helps."

"How can a bunch of nonsense be of help?" Severus sneered.

"It wasn't nonsense," Hermione said sharply, "Honestly Professor; haven't you realized by now that Luna's predictions are always correct if you know how to interpret them?"

"And I suppose you know what's she's talking about?" Severus scoffed.

"Well, yes," Hermione said, "I can't understand her as well as Harry does, but I understand at least part of what she said. 'The one with the power the Dark Lord knows not' is obviously Harry, as that's how he is mentioned in the original prophecy, and if he fails to defeat Voldemort then his bond with Draco will be broken. Someone's pawn will be there to bind Draco-the "Chosen One's chosen"-and will use the Malfoy power to release the "True Menace", whom I believe is Dumbledore. I'm not too certain about the last line, but I believe it means that our world will combine with the Muggle world and then become divided again, and magic will suffer because of it. Does that sound about right Ginny?"

"Yes," Ginny nodded, "Any idea who the pawn is?"

"Well, if Dumbledore is the "True Menace" then the pawn must be someone he has used in the past," Hermione said thoughtfully, "I'm sorry Theo, but that means you have to be a suspect, especially with that tattoo."

"It makes sense," Theo said, "Until we can find a way to remove it Dumbledore can possess me at any time. We should also keep an eye on Zacharias Smith though."

"I agree," Hermione said, then turned to address Severus, who had remained silent throughout, "Still think it was useless nonsense?"

"All prophecies are," Severus replied, "Come-we should get you all to the hospital wing; Ronald and Neville are out in the hallway waiting on you, and I expect Narcissa is out there as well."

"Cissy said she wanted to talk to McGonagall," Sirius said innocently, and Severus groaned as he imagined what Narcissa was doing to his colleague.

"Come; we must stop her before she gets sent to Azkaban," Severus said, "Ginny-contact your brothers and see if they can help us locate Harry and Draco. If not I may have to brew a potion."

"Yes sir," Ginny said, "I'll get Ron to come with me." She was the first one to leave the room, and she quickly filled Ron and Neville in on what had occurred; Ron readily agreed to go with her to find the twins while the rest of the group went up to the hospital wing to break the news to Narcissa.

"How did you let this happen, Minister?" Narcissa demanded in a soft, icy tone, "You assured me that Albus Dumbledore was in a warded cell which would prevent him from accessing his magic." Her steely eyes pierced Scrimegeour, and a bead of sweat appeared on his forehead; Severus had just finished telling them that Harry and Draco went missing after Dumbledore possessed Theodore Nott, and now instead of the minister interrogating McGonagall, he found himself being interrogated by Narcissa.

"Madame, the cell we placed Dumbledore in is heavily warded," Scrimegeour told her, "There is no way for a witch or wizard to access their magic while within the cell; I do not believe that it was Dumbledore who possessed Mr. Nott. Are we certain he wasn't acting on his own, following You-Know-Who's orders and then trying to blame Dumbledore?"

"Minister, I have examined the boy, as has Madame Pomfrey, and his magic shows signs of being tampered with," Severus said, "The magical signature mixed with his is that of Dumbledore, and he has a tattoo which also reeks of the former headmaster's magic. I assure you, this latest attack was orchestrated by Dumbledore."

"I would never willingly hurt Draco," Theo sneered at the minister, "He and I have been friends since we were children and I would never betray him."

"And Harry is part of us now too," Pansy agreed; she had come up to the hospital wing with Narcissa and was now sitting next to Theo along with Blaise, Hermione and Neville. Luna was lying unconscious on the bed next to them, having passed out upon reaching the infirmary, and Ginny and Ron had gone to Diagon Alley to locate the twins and Sirius was standing next to Severus, glaring at the minister.

"The phoenix tattoo is proof enough that Mr. Nott did not act of his own volition," Pomfrey announced, "It holds a great deal of dark magic inside it, and yet it feels like Albus' magic. It will take some time to remove it, and he will have to be seen to by a professional at St. Mungos."

"The magic is dormant right now," Sirius added, "but Dumbles can activate it at any time; he already possessed Theo once so it will be even easier for Dumbles to possess him again in the future. He could make Theo harm others, or even himself. The magic is one that old pureblood families used to keep their heirs in line."

"And how would you know this?" Scrimegeour demanded, "Perhaps you are the one who marked the boy Black; I still disagree with Amelia's decision to exonerate you. I find it hard to believe that you were truly innocent, coming from such a family."

"Amelia did declare him innocent though," Kingsley spoke up from where he had been standing a few feet away with four other aurors, "As for the boy-"

"He has a name, you know," Hermione interrupted irritably, "His name is Theo or Theodore; or you could call him Nott, but you shouldn't be calling him 'the boy'-it's rude."

"You are correct," Kinglsey bowed his head slightly in acknowledgement, "I apologize Mr. Nott. I believe young Mr. Nott should be escorted to St. Mungos immediately so that they can begin the process of removing the tattoo. Mrs. Malfoy-I will assign a team of aurors to try and locate Draco and Harry; isn't there a potion the old families use to locate wayward family members?"

"There is," Narcissa nodded, "However it takes twenty-four hours to brew the potion, and then it must sit for another twelve hours. It also requires ministry authorization because the active ingredient is the blood of a family member."

"I will speak to Madame Bones about getting that authorization," Kingsley said, "It won't help us with Harry, but perhaps once we find Draco-"

"Actually," Severus interrupted smoothly, "We have not made an announcement about it, as both Harry and I enjoy our privacy, but over the summer we discovered that I am Harry's uncle; his mother Lily was my twin."

"Preposterous," Scrimegeour scowled, "Everyone knows that Lily Potter was a Muggleborn!"

"That is what Dumbledore wanted everyone to believe," Severus said, "Once Harry is safe I will be glad to provide you with a memory sphere showing the truth. The point I was making with this revelation, is that I should be able to use the potion to locate Harry as well, if we haven't found him before the potion is ready."

"Albus sent him to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named," everyone turned to look at McGonagall, who was pale as she made this whispered announcement, "I-earlier this year Albus told me that he feared Harry was turning dark, and that he may defeat _Him_ and then become a dark lord himself. He had a plan-if he felt that it was too late to bring Harry back to our side he would send him to…to…he would send him as a sacrifice. Harry-when the Dark Lord vanished all those years ago, he inadvertently turned Harry into a horcrux, and so to finally defeat him Harry himself must die."

"Not true," Hermione protested, "Professor Snape created a potion to destroy the horcrux without harming Harry; it is supposed to be ready by Halloween! All we need is a few more weeks!"

"I-a potion?" McGonagall sounded uncertain, "But…Albus assured me there was no other way."

"Yes, because he has been honest and forthcoming about everything else," Narcissa said drily, "I believe Professor McGonagall should be examined by a mind healer; obviously her brains have been addled by Dumbledore if she still believes his goals are pure." McGonagall opened her mouth to reply, but Kingsley beat her to it.

"A lot of us were fooled by Dumbledore, Lady Malfoy," he said gravely, "And it is hard to come to terms with the fact that a man you put so much trust in has betrayed everything you believed in. Until a few days ago I still believed in him as well; I thought that he had been falsely imprisoned and that perhaps Harry was being controlled by you and your son. I apologize for my attitude, and I will do all I can to help you find them both."

"Well when are we going to stop standing around and do something?" Sirius demanded, "Harry's been in the company of Voldemort for an hour by now, and who knows where Draco is and what he's facing; why are we still standing here?"

"Because we don't know where to look," Severus said in exasperation, "What do you propose we do? Search the whole of Britain on foot?"

"Professor," Pansy interrupted, "I have an idea. We all know my father is loyal to the Dark-to HIM, and I believe Mother is as well. I can contact Mother and see if she knows where…HE is."

"Ah hah!" Scrimegeour sounded triumphant, "The young lady admits to being a supporter of-"

"She said no such thing," Pomfrey interrupted, "Really minister! You are worse than the children! Don't you have important matters to attend to? Somewhere far away from my infirmary?"

"As a matter of fact I do have things to attend to," Scrimegeour replied frostily, "First on my agenda is replacing the current faculty at Hogwarts with people loyal to the ministry. Kingsley! Bring Madame McGonagall to the ministry for questioning; the Nott boy too."

"I am afraid I can't do that," Kingsley said, "Both appear to be suffering from a magical attack according to Madame Pomfrey, and so I shall have to take them to St. Mungos for observation. I will make sure they are guarded by…four aurors each?"

"We cannot spare that many aurors," Scrimegeour scowled, "Especially since we must also search for Potter and Malfoy. Two aurors each, and as soon as they are cleared I want them at the ministry."

"Of course," Kingsley agreed, "I will find you after I speak with Madame Bones so we can decide what to do next." Scrimegeour gave a curt nod and then headed to Pomfrey's office so that he could floo back to the ministry.

"I think I like him even less that Fudge," Hermione scowled as the minister left without another word, "So…what do we do next?"

"I would like to keep you and Miss Lovegood overnight for further observation," Madame Pomfrey announced, "Your magic levels appear to be depleted Miss Granger, and Miss Lovegood is suffering from the burns she sustained while trying to help Draco. When Miss Weasley returns I will need to examine her as well. Auror Shacklebot-will you be taking Minerva and Mr. Nott to St. Mungos?"

"Yes," Kingsley affirmed, "In fact, we should go now so that I can catch Amelia before she leaves the office for the day." He turned his attention to Severus and Narcissa, "I should have the authorization for the potion before the end of the day, however if I am not mistaken you can begin brewing it without authorization, is that correct?"

"It is," Severus confirmed, "The first part of the brewing process takes twenty-four hours, and the blood cannot be added until then; as long as we have authorization before we add the blood the potion is completely legal."

"Very well; I will return as soon as I can. Minerva, are you ready to go?"

"Yes, Kingsley," McGonagall nodded, "I am ready to go, and I am willing to give my statement to one of your aurors."

"Very well, then we shall take our leave," he turned to look at Theo, who was still sitting with his friends, whispering over a book with Hermione, "Mr. Nott?" Theo looked up in surprise and then quickly slid off the examining table, giving his friends a small smile; Pansy was the only one to notice that his gaze lingered on Hermione the longest. Kingsley, McGonagall and Theo said their farewells and vanished into the office; they would floo to the Leaky Cauldron and go to St. Mungos from there.

"Good; now everyone except for Miss Granger and Miss Lovegood out of my infirmary," Pomfrey commanded, "Miss Lovegood still has not awoken and I need to focus on my patients. When Miss Weasley arrives send her up as well."

"Of course, Madame," Narcissa agreed, "Shall we return to your rooms Severus? Or shall we return to our earlier location?"

"My rooms will be satisfactory," Severus replied, "That way I can begin brewing the potion. Miss Granger can assist me with the potion, as it requires two people to brew. Miss Parkinson, you, Zabini and Longbottom should return to your houses; when we discover where Harry and Draco are we will let you know. If you hear from the Weasley's send them to me, but make sure Ginerva goes to the hospital wing."

"Yes, Professor Snape," Pansy agreed, "After you talk to the rest of the Lions would you like to join us Neville? We can work on our Defense project together?" The three teens talked quietly as they walked down the hall, while Hermione followed Snape, Sirius and Narcissa to Snape's office.

**AN:** Sorry for the long wait; I've still been having trouble getting the chapters out, and I know that this one is really short but I'm working on winding things down. Next chapter will likely still take a while to be posted, but we'll check back in with Harry or Draco; possibly both. I have some notes for chapters that did not get posted-sort of fillers about classes and Hogsmeade-so I may update by adding those in, although I will probably wait until the story is finished and add them in when I go back to edit. Either way, if I go back and fill in some stuff from earlier in the story I will post a note for it. Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and the next chapter will be up as soon as I can get it out. I probably won't post again until after the holidays, so Merry Christmas to everyone! For those who celebrate something other than Christmas, I wish you Happy Holidays.


	38. Chapter 37

The port key dropped Harry onto a cold stone floor, and he took a moment to catch his breath. Looking around he was surprised to see that Voldemort was nowhere around; he had thought that the port key was designed to take him straight to Voldemort. After a moment, however, he heard a hissing voice-

"_Who isss there? Hasss Masster given me another sssnack?" _As Nagini slithered into view, her forked tongue tasting the air, Harry knew why he hadn't been sent directly to Voldemort-Dumbledore wanted him to kill Nagini first; he was probably hoping that Harry and Voldemort would both die in this next confrontation.

'Probably thought Sev had already gotten rid of the horcrux in me,' Harry thought, 'But how does he expect me to kill her? I don't have anything on me that can destroy a horcrux, although I suppose I could try casting fiendfyre…if I lose control of it though I'll be dead too. Maybe I should just turn myself over to Voldie and tell him that I'm a horcrux-he should be able to sense it once I point it out.'

As Harry went through his Nagini had gotten closer but she stopped just in front of him.

"_I know thisss ssscent," _she hissed, _"You are the one Masster wantsss to kill himssself."_

"_Take me to him," _Harry commanded in Parseltongue, _"I wisssh to sspeak to your master."_

Nagini agreed and slithered out of the room with Harry following closely. She led him down a darkened hallway that was devoid of other life, although Harry occasionally heard a soft murmur of voices from behind closed doors. He briefly entertained the thought of breaking into the rooms and causing as much damage as possible before he was taken down, but his promise to Draco-his promise that he would return-stopped him. He did, however, grip his wand-or rather Luna's-tightly as he followed the large snake. After several minutes they came to a room with a large, solid oak door and it opened when Nagini hissed a command. Once the door was opened Harry caught sight of Voldemort sitting on a throne-like chair and reviewing some documents, and his scar immediately began to hurt; it was nowhere near as bad as it had been before he learned Occlumency, but there was a faint burning and he couldn't hold back his gasp of pain.

"Who dares disturb me?" Voldemort demanded, red eyes flashing angrily as he looked up from the table; his glare faded to a triumphant smirk as he saw Harry trailing behind Nagini, "Ah, Harry Potter; it seems the old fool has kept our bargain after all, although I cannot fathom why he would have sent you to Nagini instead of myself."

"He wanted me to kill her first," Harry announced, walking further into the room and hiding a wince as the door slammed shut behind him, "See, he told me that you can't die until all of your horcruxes have been destroyed; the ring, the cup, the locket, the tiara and, of course, the diary have already been destroyed so he wanted me to kill Nagini before facing you."

"I should have expected such a trick from Dumbledore," Voldemort hissed, "How did he come to know of my creations?"

"The diary," Harry replied, "He examined the diary, and then he did research into your past, so now you are left with only two horcruxes."

"Yes, you have failed in your mission," Voldemort said smirked triumphantly, "So now I-" he paused as Harry's words registered; "I had only created six horcruxes and you destroyed five, yet you said I have two left. Explain yourself Harry Potter."

"You intentionally created six," Harry corrected, "The night you ki-the night you gave me this scar you accidentally created a seventh horcrux; it's why we've always had a connection. Dumbledore obviously wanted me to confront you after killing Nagini because he thought that by killing your final horcrux with your own hand you would basically be killing yourself."

"Very clever," Voldemort mused, "It would not have worked, however it was a well-thought out plan none-the-less. If I killed you it would have weakened me, but not killed me; it would have merely destroyed the part of my soul within you. The both of us would have survived, and another duel would have been required for one of us to live. However, now that I know you are one of my horcruxes-"

"You won't kill me," Harry interrupted, "I was hoping you would say that, because I really don't want to die."

"I will not let you leave either, Harry Potter," Voldemort told him, "You shall remain here, my prisoner…unless, of course, you wish to join me? I once offered you power, and I can still give you more power than you have ever dreamed of."

"No thanks," Harry said casually, "I'd rather be your prisoner; I didn't reveal Dumbles plot because I want you to live-I just know that right now I can't kill you and I'd rather live to fight another day."

"As my prisoner you will not have the chance to fight me again," Voldemort said, "Accio Harry Potter's wand." He waited, but nothing happened and Voldemort narrowed his eyes, "Did Dumbledore send you here defenseless then? Perhaps he has decided to sacrifice his pawn regardless of whether or not you were able to kill Nagini."

"I'm sure that's what he wanted," Harry said, "But I do have a wand-" he pulled Luna's wand out of his pocket, "it's just not mine. Dumbles said I can't fight you if I use my own wand because our wands are brothers."

"I had heard that," Voldemort said, "Very well; Accio wand." This time the wand went sailing towards Voldemort and he caught it easily, "I will show you to your room, Harry Potter; I have had several rooms warded to keep prisoners. You will have a house elf to bring you food, however aside from myself and Nagini you will have no visitors; perhaps some solitude will convince you to join me."

"Not a chance," Harry replied, "I'll get out of here eventually; you'll see. I'll never join you."

"We shall see," Voldemort said, "This way Harry; Nagini will follow us." Harry walked beside Voldemort back through the hallways, and this time they passed several Death Eater's; from the looks of awe on their face Harry guessed that they thought Voldemort had captured him-either that or they thought he had been persuaded to join their side. Harry wanted badly to correct their assumptions-he just knew this would be all over the papers by morning-but decided to hold off; Voldemort wouldn't kill him, but somehow Harry felt that he was not safe from other curses, and he had no desire to experience one just yet.

"You will be staying here," Voldemort announced, opening the door to a small suite; Harry walked into the sitting room and looked around. He was standing in the sitting room, and the door to the bathroom was off to one side while the door to the bedroom was off to the other. It was actually very nice, if a little gloomy with the drab blue and grey color scheme.

"The colors themselves may make me commit suicide," Harry said offhandedly, and then jumped in surprise as he felt a spell wash over him; "What the hell was that?" He glared at Voldemort.

"It will alert me if you-or anyone else-attempts to end your life," Voldemort replied, "You are my property now, Harry Potter, and I am the only one who can destroy you. You would do well to learn my rules, the first of which is do not question me; Crucio." Harry was unprepared for the pain and fell to the ground, a scream falling from his lips; he thrashed on the carpet for what seemed like an hour before Voldemort released the curse. "When you displease me you shall suffer; please me and you shall be rewarded. Come, Nagini; we must alert the others to our guest." Harry lay panting on the floor as Voldemort left; he heard the sound of a lock clicking, and then he felt several powerful wards being set and he knew that the chances of him escaping on his own were slim to none. Of course, that didn't mean he wasn't going to try-he just needed to rest a few more minutes while he waited for the pain from the cruciatus to fade away. He lay there, his body aching for a long time, and eventually fell asleep on the floor, praying that he would find a way out of this-and soon.

The second he picked up the wand Draco knew it was a mistake; the wand didn't feel like Harry. Seconds later he felt the familiar tug at his navel which preluded portkey travel, and then he found himself lying on the floor. The potion Severus gave him had not had a chance to work yet, so Draco still felt weak from the curse, and his muscles ached unrelentingly; the travel by portkey definitely did not help matters any.

It took a few minutes, but once Draco recovered from the trip he looked around to get his bearings; he was in a small room, which had shelves full of broken things, a small table with a chair and a mattress atop a metal frame. The room had a single window with bars on it, and directly across from the window was a door, which Draco discovered to be locked. Draco shrugged and pulled out his wand, only to be shocked when his spell didn't work. He tried several more spells, but none of them worked, and then he attempted to open a portal but that magic failed as well.

"Where the hell am I?" Draco demanded, glaring furiously around the room, "Dumbledore, you old fool! You will suffer for this!"

"You there!" A woman's voice came through the door, high-pitched and waspish, "Be quiet if you know what's good for you! You're the reason why we lost so much money, but the old man promised to give us more if we helped him. He put up protections around the house so none of your nonsense will work here. You'll stay in that room until I decide otherwise, and if you make our neighbors suspicious you will be punished. Now, if you want something to eat tomorrow you'll keep quiet!"

"I don't know who you are," Draco spoke in a soft, dangerous voice, "But when I get out of here I will make you pay for your treatment of me."

"That settles it!" The woman screeched, "No breakfast for you; no lunch either!" Draco heard the sound of the woman walking away from him and growled in frustration; what was going on? Where had Dumbledore sent him to? He looked around the small room in disgust and then decided to examine things more closely; perhaps he would be able to find some sort of clue to his whereabouts. Draco went over to the bookshelves fist, but didn't find anything worthwhile; pretty much everything was broken, except for several books which were covered in a thick layer of dust. On the wall above the bed he saw a piece of paper that had been used to make a calendar that someone had used to faithfully count off the days until September first. In fact, there were several of these hand-drawn calendars, dating back to the year that he himself had started at Hogwarts. A sneaking suspicion began to form in his mind, and Draco felt that the handwriting was familiar, so he took all six papers down off the wall and sat down to examine them. The first one had nothing but a calendar on it, so Draco set it aside. The second had a crudely drawn broom and a snitch, as well as the hoops from Quidditch. The third had more brooms and snitches, as well as a picture of a giant snake and a bird that Draco realized was supposed to represent a phoenix. The fourth calendar had an hourglass, a hippogriff, a large dog and a house, while the fifth calendar had a maze drawn all the way around the edges. The last calendar simply had a curtain hanging between two pillars, and the words "I must not tell lies" written numerous times around the edges.

'This is where Harry stayed every summer,' Draco realized, looking around the room with new eyes. He remembered Harry told him that all of his cousins' broken toys wound up in here, and so likely the only things that actually belonged to Harry were the hand drawn calendars, which Draco carefully folded and placed in his pocket. He remembered hearing about a loose floorboard as well, and after several minutes he located it and pried it up. In the hollow beneath the floorboards were several birthday cards from Harry's friends, as well as several scrolls which were covered in Harry's handwriting. At first Draco assumed them to be old class assignments, but then he caught sight of his name on one and couldn't help but read it.

'_Well here I am back at Privet Drive. They hate me more than ever now and have locked me in my room. Poor Hedwig never gets to go flying anymore. Why did they send me back? I told Dumbledore-the headmaster of my school-that my relative's don't want me, but he wouldn't listen. I'm not surprised adults never listen. I would rather be anywhere but here. I would even rather stay with Draco Malfoy ad his family even though I'm sure they all hate me too. At least if I was with them I would still be part of the Wizarding World. Sometimes I think about when Draco wanted to be my friend and I feel bad for not accepting. I think he was trying to be nice in his own way, but he made fun of Ron who is the first friend I have ever had and I can't be friends with both of them. It doesn't matter anyway because I am in Gryffindor like my parents and Draco is a Slytherin so we have to hate each other. I do wonder what I could learn from him though. Ron is very nice but he does get mad easy. His older brother Percy is a know-it-all but he's nice too. I really like talking to the twins Fred and George because they are very funny and like to prank everyone. Hermione is also a good friend even if I didn't like her at first she is a Muggleborn like my mom which makes her special. Ron and Hermione helped me stop Voldemort from coming back he tried to steal a stone that would give him a lot of gold and immortality but we stopped him. Dumbledore said he will try again though. I don't think I trust Dumbledore he seems nice but he eats too many Lemon Drops. I can't wait to go back to school next year!'_

Draco read through Harry's accounting of his first year and shook his head in disgust; the Muggles locked Harry up for the summer? Who did that to a child? Well, now that he was here and Harry was nowhere around to stop him-Draco refused to think about where his fiancé actually was at the moment because it would just cause him to panic-Draco could enact a little revenge upon them. If, that is, he could ever get his magic to work. He frowned; for his magic to have failed meant that Dumbledore had put up wards to block it-which meant that the wand had obviously been a trap just for him, but why? Was it just to get him out of the way so that he would be unable to save him? Or did Dumbledore have something else in mind?

"Well, I suppose the only way to find out is to wait around for Dumbles to come see me," Draco mused out loud, "Either that or convince the Muggles to give me some answers…before I hex them, I suppose."

Since he was unable to do anything else at the moment Draco read through the rest of the journal-type pages Harry had left behind in this room. He wrote at least one at the end of every school year, but most summers he wrote several entries, detailing not only what happened at school but also what the Muggles did to him over the summer. By the time he finished reading through fourth year Draco had started to feel tired, so he reluctantly stretched out on the bed; the pillow smelled like Harry, bringing his worries about the brunette to the forefront of his mind. He lay there fretting for several hours before finally drifting into an uneasy sleep just before dawn.

Draco woke up just before noon, according to the clock sitting on the floor next to the bed. After stretching out his sore muscles-how in the world did Harry sleep on this thing?-Draco got up and resumed his examination of the room from the night before; he had gotten distracted by Harry's scrolls and had not yet had a chance to look in the wardrobe. Opening the doors he wrinkled his nose at the large, torn and faded clothing that was revealed; these were obviously the clothes Harry wore at home-after his fat cousin had already worn them practically to rags. Sitting on the bottom of the wardrobe were jeans and shorts, and Draco didn't see anything else so he started to close the door when a sparkle caught his eye. He turned back to the wardrobe and moved the jeans aside carefully until he uncovered a mirror; the glass was shattered, but Harry had tried to repair it-the shards of glass were in the antique frame but several pieces were missing, and Draco found them on the bottom of the wardrobe as well, along with a bottle of paste. Taking up the mirror and the loose shards Draco moved over to the small table and set to work trying to fit the shards back in place; the mirror he had recognized as belonging to the Black family, and if he could replace all of the shards it should repair itself-that is, if Dumbledore's wards didn't interfere in that as well.

For several hours Draco worked on the mirror, until his neck and shoulders began to ache from leaning over and then he grabbed up another scroll-the last one-and sat down on the bed to read it. This scroll was longer than all of the others, and actually went into great detail about their fifth year. Draco winced when he read what Harry had written about him-last year was not his finest and he was not proud of his actions; he's also had no idea the true number of times Harry had been in detention with Umbridge, and he vowed to get revenge on her as well-once she was release from Mungos, of course; it seems the centaurs had driven her quite mad.

That evening Draco heard a soft sound out in the hallway and a moment after that a tray was pushed in through a cat flap in the bottom of the door.

"Hey! Muggle! Let me out of here!" Draco yelled, "I know who you are; you're Harry's relatives and I will make you pay for how you treated him!" There was no reply, and Draco scowled as he realized that whoever had pushed the tray through had already gone. With a sigh Draco picked the tray up and took it to the table; after reading Harry's scrolls Draco had expected the worst, so he was surprised to find that the Muggles had given him a baked chicken breast with brown rice and the cup of water was cold. Having gone without breakfast and lunch Draco was nearly starving and so he quickly ate the meal given to him and drank down the glass of water. About twenty minutes after he finished eating he heard a series of clicks outside the door and then it opened to reveal a very large Muggle-he had a gun in his hands and it was aimed at Draco.

"You there-to the bathroom now," the man said gruffly, "You have five minutes and if you try anything funny I will shoot you. You do know what this is, don't you freak?"

"Yes, Harry has described a gun to me Dursley," Draco replied calmly, "Which way is the bathroom?" Vernon gestured with the gun and Draco obligingly went to the bathroom. After doing his business and washing his hands Draco looked at the door, and then at the small window above the toilet, but shook his head; the window was too small for him to get out of, and he already knew he was on the second floor. Draco reluctantly left the bathroom when Dursley knocked on the door and he allowed the man to take him back to the bedroom, but when they reached the door he quickly turned and grabbed the gun from the obese Muggle and used it to hit him upside the head. The man let out a pain-filled cry of outrage, but Draco ignored it and ran for the stairs; he had just about reached them when a hand grabbed the back of his shirt and yanked him backwards before slamming him into the wall; his head connected painfully, and then he received a fist to his gut, knocking the wind out of him.

"Stupid freak!" Draco looked up and saw that his attacker was Harry's cousin; the boy glared at hi with watery blue eyes and punched him in the gut again, causing Draco to fall to his knees as his vision wavers. "How dare you attack my dad? I'll teach you, you freak! You're no better than that freak cousin of mine! At least he knew his place!" Draco glared up at the obese teen in front of him and received a knee to the nose, causing blood to pour out.

"Good man Dudley," the elder Dursley praised his son, "I'll take it from here; you tell your mother that this freak is to get no more food until I say so."

"Okay Dad," Dudley agreed, turning to go downstairs without a backwards glance at the boy he left bleeding on the floor. Dursley Senior grabbed Draco by the arm and drug him back to the bedroom where he threw him down on the floor.

"I told you no funny business boy," the man glared down at the young wizard, "Now I'm going to teach you a lesson you won't soon forget."

"Do your worst, idiot Muggle," Draco sneered, getting back to his feet, "You are nothing but a pathetic waste of space; no wonder the Dark Lord wants to eradicate you all! You are nothing but animals; no-you are worse than an animal! You are a monster, and when I get out of here you and your family will spend the rest of your life paying for how you have treated me."

"Enough!" The man thundered, backhanding Draco; "You pathetic little worm! How dare you speak to me like that! I'll teach you to mouth off to your betters!" The Muggle advanced on Draco and, without his magic, he was unable to effectively fight back; the next several minutes consisted of Vernon Dursley beating Draco, cracking a rib and giving him a black eye and a busted lip, along with numerous other injuries to go along with the ones Dudley had given the boy. For the past fifteen years he had been forced to put up with his nephew's freakish behavior and had been unable to properly take out his frustrations on the boy because of instructions from the old man, but he had no such instructions about dealing with this freak and so he didn't hold anything back, and when he was done the young wizard lay in a heap on the floor, blood flowing from numerous lacerations.

"Let that be a lesson to you freak," Vernon said, spitting on the crumpled form at his feet before turning and walking from the room. He returned a few minutes later with a bucket of water and some rags, and saw that the boy had pulled himself up into a sitting position on the floor, although he still looked shaky. "You will clean up this mess," Vernon commanded, "and I do not want to hear any noise out of this room. The more you defy me the longer it will be before you can eat, understand?"

"I understand," Draco croaked, his voice hoarse from crying during his beating; Vernon nodded in satisfaction, and left the room again; Draco listened closely ad he heard the sound of a key turning in a lock-but it was only one lock, not the four or five that had to be undone when the fat Muggle had let him out of the room. Draco glared at the closed door and then the bucket of water before sighing in resignation; he was in no position to fight back without his magic, and if he continued to aggravate the Muggle he would likely end up dead before he could manage to escape, so it would be best to go along with things for now. He crawled over to the bucket, wincing as his ribs protested the movement, and picked up one of the rags. He dipped it in the water and used it to wipe the blood off his face and hands before reluctantly starting on the floor. After about an hour he had gotten as much of the blood up as possible and he moved the bucket of dirty water up against the wall. Looking down at his clothes he saw that they also had blood on them, so he changed into some of the overly-large clothes in the wardrobe, grimacing at the cheap material; well, at least they were clean.

Draco thought about working on the mirror again, but he was afraid the Muggle would come back and take it from him, so instead he sat on the bed and stared at the wall until he heard footsteps approach the room again. The door opened to once again reveal Vernon Dursley, and Draco shrank back at the sight of the man, which brought a smile to Vernon's face.

"Good," Vernon nodded as he looked around and saw that the floor was clean and Draco was wearing normal clothes, "Bring this bucket to the bathroom and dump out this nasty water."

"Yes, sir," Draco said quietly, moving stiffly as he picked up the bucket and carried it to the bathroom where he dumped it down the tub; afterwards he washed the bucket and the tub under Vernon's supervision, and then he was given a few moments alone to take care of business before being led back to the bedroom where he was once again locked in-but again he only heard one lock before the large Muggle walked away.

"Must think I'm too injured to put up another fight or try to escape right now," Draco muttered, then winced as his rib twinged again, "And he would be right. I need to heal before I try anything again."

"Boy!" there was a rap on the door and he heard the woman's voice this time, "Turn off that light! It's time for bed and I won't have you up all night wasting electricity!"

"Yes, Mrs. Dursley," Draco responded, turning off the light and sitting back down on the bed. He waited until he heard the Dursley's all come upstairs, and then he waited another hour, before moving the loose floorboard and picking up the flashlight that had been hidden there; Harry had told him about the flashlight and how to use it one night when he was talking about his childhood. Draco then took the sheet off the bed and placed it on the floor up against the door, rolling it up so that no light would show underneath the door. He gathered the mirror shards and sat on the floor against the opposite wall and turned the flashlight on so that he could work on the mirror again. He was able to replace several pieces before the flashlight started flickering, and then it went out. Draco considered turning the regular light on but he was afraid a neighbor might see the light and rat him out, so he reluctantly put the mirror and the flashlight back under the loose floorboard, retrieved the sheet from the floor, and went to bed. Despite the aches and pains from his beating, it didn't take Draco long to fall asleep.

Things went on in a similar manner for a week; Draco managed to avoid another beating like the first he had been given, but he had been hit a few times since then, mostly for mouthing off. After his second day with the Muggles Draco had been given chores to do, and if they were not done correctly he would not get fed, and sometimes Dursley Senior would smack him around a bit. Dursley Junior hit him a few times as well but that had nothing to do with his chores and everything to do with despising Draco. Over the week Draco spent more time working on the mirror and it was now mostly complete, and he had also explored the room further, finding a few more of Harry's belongings hidden here and there.

It was now Draco's eighth day with the Muggles, and he had been surprised when Petunia had come in and ordered him to shower and change his clothes; after his shower-which had never felt so good-Draco changed into a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt that were actually close to being the correct size, and then he returned to the bedroom, having been told that he would have no chores today. He was in the room for two hours when the fat Muggle came up to tell him that they were going out for the day and he, Draco, was to stay in his room and not break anything. Draco waited until he heard the car pull out of the drive, and then he gathered up the pieces of mirror once more.

It would have been easier to work on the mirror while sitting at the desk, but he could hide it more quickly if he sat on the floor, and so the floor it was. The house was silent for several hours when Draco heard a noise downstairs. He tilted his head, listening carefully, and could make out footsteps on the stairs. He knew it wasn't the Muggles because he hadn't heard the car return; could he be rescued? He wanted to think so, but he was a Slytherin, and practical, so he quickly hid the mirror and moved to the bed, picking up the book he had been reading whenever the Muggles didn't have chores for him to do.

It seemed an eternity before the mysterious person reached the second floor landing, and then it took even longer for the lock to be opened. Finally though, the door swung open and Draco was able to see who had come to visit him. The sight before him was enough to enrage Draco to the point that he forgot about his injuries and the minor aches and pains caused by life with the Dursley's.

"You!?" Draco cried, jumping up from the bed and ignoring the pain from his ribs, "What the hell are you doing here?!"

**AN: Yes, the new chapter is finally up…and I am mean enough to leave it as another cliff hanger! Bad author! I have started the next chappie, but I'm not sure when I'll be able to finish it. I'm working on getting to the end of the story, but I don't want to rush it too much and have it come out crappy. Or, do like some authors who lose their muse and jump forward 2-3 years with the epilogue "Once he escaped Harry was able to retrieve the wand and he challenged Voldie to a duel. The Final Battle was observed by many, and Harry was, of course, successful in the end. He and Draco got married and with their combined powers were able to defeat Dumbledore as well. The two former rivals went on to have lots of babies and lived happily ever after. The end." I could do that, but I won't, so the chapters will probably take a while. Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and I hope you like the chapter!**


	39. Chapter 38

""You!?" Draco cried, jumping up from the bed and ignoring the pain from his ribs, "What the hell are you doing here?! Did Dumbledore send you?"

"Really, Mr. Malfoy! That is no way to speak to a teacher," Minerva McGonagall stood in the doorway, looking even more imposing than she normally did when standing at the front of her class, "If we were in school I would certainly be taking away points."

"But we aren't in school," Draco sneered, "And it's all because of your precious Dumbledore. Did you know he sent me here so that the Muggles could beat me?" Well, Draco didn't know that for sure because the Muggles never said anything about why he was here, but it wasn't that difficult to guess.

"Yes, I am aware of that," Draco was shocked by her admission, "I had nearly forgotten that he had mentioned this as part of the plan, and once I _did_ remember, none of the healers would believe me, so I had to slip out of St. Mungo's and come after you myself. Now, we need to hurry and leave, Mr. Malfoy; I don't know how long it will be before the Muggles return."

"They said they would be gone all day," Draco frowned as he followed her out into the hallway, "But…the way they acted I think someone else is supposed to be coming here; they had me change into nicer clothes and they didn't have me do chores today either."

"Then we should leave at once," McGonagall reiterated, "Is there anything you need to bring?"

"No," Draco shook his head, "All I had with me was my wand, but I don't want to leave yet; I want to see who shows up; now that you're here we can find out who has been working with the Muggles-"

"And if it is Albus and he has somehow managed to escape Azkaban then we will likely be killed," McGonagall interrupted, "I can set up a surveillance spell, and if a witch or wizard comes here alarms will go off, alerting the ministry. Besides; I spoke to Kingsley and he said Harry is still missing-don't you want to go look for him?" Draco glared at the professor; how dare she insinuate that he didn't care about Harry?! Of course he wanted to make sure his fiancé was safe!

"Do the spell," Draco said, "And then we can leave." He debated a moment before asking, "Can you tell me what happened after I was captured?" McGonagall didn't answer right away, needing all her concentration to cast the spells. Once she was done she headed downstairs with Draco following behind.

"After you vanished everyone began working on a plan to locate both you and Harry," McGonagall said briskly, "I am not aware of all the details, but I know they had intended to use the Familial Locator potion to find both you and Harry; for some reason they were not given permission to use the potion though, and so they have been trying other, less powerful potions, as well as locator spells. I, along with Mr. Nott, was taken to St Mungos; they have managed to sever the link between Mr. Nott and Albus, and they have begun to remove the actual tattoo now. I was set to be released tomorrow, but once I remembered Albus' plan I signed myself out and immediately came here to free you. Do you wish to open a portal back to the school, or would you like to side-along with me?" They were standing by the front door now, and McGonagall had her hand on the knob.

"I'll open a portal to mine and Harry's rooms," Draco replied, "It will be faster. Thank you, Professor. If you will step back, I can open the portal right here." McGonagall stepped aside and watched as Draco used the front door to create a portal; "Will you be returning to the school with me, Professor?"

"Yes," McGonagall nodded, "The minister will begin looking for me soon, but perhaps I can evade him a little while longer; there are still things to be done." Draco bowed and opened the door, motioning for McGonagall to go through first. A few moments later, they were in Harry and Draco's private rooms. Draco didn't even pause to look around, but immediately called for his house elves.

"Dobby! Winky!" The two elves appeared simultaneously and began crying out their joy at Draco's return.

"Where are Mother and Severus?" Draco demanded, cutting the elves off.

"They is being in Master Snape's rooms," Winky replied, "They is being trying to find Master Draco and Master Harry. They is being sad and worrying."

"I am going to find Poppy," McGonagall said, "Please let me know once you find Harry."

"I will," Draco assured her, and McGonagall crossed the room, leaving without a backwards glance, "Dobby-find all the New Marauder's and tell them to meet in the Room of Requirement in half an hour. Winky-take me to Severus' rooms."

"Yes, Master Draco!" both elves chorused; Dobby popped out, and Winky took Draco by the hand, apparating them to Severus' rooms. They landed in the sitting room, where Severus, Sirius, Narcissa and Remus were in the middle of a heated argument…

******Ten minutes prior

"I can't believe the minister," Narcissa frowned, "How dare he refuse to lift the ban on the Familial Locator potion? You would think that he would at least care about Harry being missing, even if he does not care about Draco." She had just come back from a meeting with Kingsley, who had told her that McGonagall had left St Mungos, and that Scrimegeour was still refusing to allow them to use the potion. Amelia Bones had originally granted them permission, but the minister overrode her decision.

"Scrimegeour is an idiot," Severus replied, not looking up from his notebook, "I had thought he was promising at first, but now I see he is no better than Fudge. I have been working to alter the locator potion to use a lock of hair instead of blood, but so far it is not strong enough. I am tempted to brew the regular potion and say to Hell with the ministry, but I know Scrimegeour is just looking for an excuse to throw us in Azkaban; Kingsley said that the minister feels we cause too much trouble and he wishes for us to be out of the way so that he can take control of Harry until the Dark Lord has been defeated."

"The twins and I have been trying to strengthen the spells on the map too," Sirius spoke up from where he and Remus were sitting on the couch and looking at the map, "But we still can't find a way to get around a building that has wards. The map shows that Harry and Draco are both in regular pain, but nothing life-threatening." He scowled at the map in front of him, then; "I'm sick of this, dammit! What the fuck is wrong with Scrimegeour? Why won't anyone help us find our boys?!"

"Calm down, Siri," Remus said soothingly, "You said yourself the boys are fine-"

"No," Sirius interrupted, "I said they are in regular pain-that means someone is hurting them! We have to find them!"

"And we will," Severus said, "You are not the only one worried, Mutt; we just don't have enough information to go on."

"I don't care!" Sirius yelled, "Harry and Draco have been gone for a week! I'm not sitting around waiting anymore; I might not be able to find Harry, but I can find Bellatrix and-" The sound of house elf apparition caught his attention, and Sirius looked behind him to see Draco and Winky.

"Draco!" Narcissa cried, for once not caring about maintaining Pureblood behavior as she ran to embrace her son. Draco returned the hug, and they were silent for a moment as Narcissa pulled herself back together.

"I am glad you have returned," Severus said once mother and son had parted, "You have numerous bruises, and a black eye; what other injuries do you have?"

"A couple cracked ribs, I think," Draco replied, even as Severus started a diagnostic scan, "They don't hurt as much anymore. You can go, Winky." The house elf bowed and vanished with a soft pop.

"What happened?" Narcissa asked, her expression once more calm as she sat down in a nearby chair.

"Well, when I picked up the fake wand it took me to a room I'd never seen before," Draco said as he took his own seat, "I was locked in, there were bars on the windows, and there were wards stopping me from using magic. After looking around the room, I realized that I was in the home of Harry's Muggle relative's." Sirius opened his mouth, but Remus' hand on his shoulder stopped him from saying anything and Draco continued, "The Muggles yelled at me, hit me and starved me, all the while forcing me to do chores. My second day there was the worst, because I tried to escape and that is when the largest Muggle broke my ribs. For the past week I was trying to think of a way to escape, then today the Muggles left me in the house alone and Professor McGonagall showed up and set me free. She came back to the school with me, and then said she was going to find Madam Pomfrey." Draco took the two vials of healing potion from Severus and quickly downed them; "Thank you, Uncle. Once we locate Harry, I plan to make those Muggles pay for their treatment of me-and for everything they did to Harry."

"Don't worry," Sirius flashed an evil grin, "I'll be glad to help."

"Unfortunately, we haven't had any luck in locating Harry," Remus said quietly, "We know the port key was supposed to send him to Voldemort, but we don't know where he is."

"Hermione and Pansy have been working together to create a ritual using runes and arithmancy," Narcissa said, "They believe they are close to finishing it, and it should be ready in two days' time."

"That reminds me, I told Dobby to have everyone meet in the Room of Requirement," Draco said, "I should probably head up there; is anyone else coming?"

"We will all go," Severus said, putting his notes in his pocket, "We usually meet after supper to discuss plans, so we shall just have the meeting a little bit early." The group of five left Severus' quarters and made their way to the seventh floor corridor where they found a door already awaiting them.

"Draco!" as soon as he stepped in the room, Pansy launched herself at Draco; the next several minutes were a confusion of noise as everyone spoke at once. Once things had calmed down, Draco looked around to see who was there; in addition to the adults and Pansy, Draco saw Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Blaise, Luna, Neville and the twins. Draco, of course, had to tell his story again to his friends, and he saw that the twins immediately began whispering-no doubt plotting ways to help get revenge on the Dursley's; he saw Sirius start to join the twins, but Severus grabbed the back of his shirt and made the pouting animagus sit down.

Once Draco told his story again, the group began to discuss plans for finding Harry. Draco discovered that Hermione and Pansy had actually finished creating the ritual, and that they simply had to wait for the new moon which was two nights away. Out of all the plans theirs seemed the most feasible, but Draco didn't want to spend any more time waiting; Severus' potions had healed him completely, and now he wanted to find his fiancé. Sirius, of course, agreed with Draco, as did Ron and the twins. Ron suggested finding Riddle Manor, as it was Voldemort's Muggle Father's home, and Draco thought that the Dark Lord might even be at Malfoy Manor. An argument broke out between those that wanted to go out and search and those that wanted to rely on the ritual, with only Narcissa, Luna and Neville staying out of it.

Narcissa was conflicted because she wanted to find Harry, but also wanted to keep Draco safe. Neville was willing to go search for Harry, but didn't see the point in arguing; he would just go along with Draco when he finally left. Luna-well, Luna was humming to herself as she passed out cinnamon candy to everyone, lecturing about the dangers associated with cinnadoms.

"I refuse to argue about this any longer," Draco finally said, standing up and looking haughtily at the others in the room, "I am going to look for Harry tonight. I will be leaving in two hours, so anyone who wishes to accompany me should be at mine and Harry's rooms before then."

"You can't just-" Hermione began a new protest, but a bright flash of flames interrupted her, and Fawkes appeared in the center of the room, directly in front of Draco.

"Do you know where Harry is?" Draco demanded, remembering that the phoenix had taken him to his fiancé once before, "I need you to take me to him." Fawkes just looked at him solemnly for a moment, and then the phoenix became engulfed in flames so bright that Draco had to look away. When the glow faded, Draco turned back to see a man standing where Fawkes had previously been, and he immediately drew his wand. "Who are you?"

"Do you not recognize me?" the man's voice was musical, reminiscent of bird song, and he smiled gently at Draco, "I am here to help you once more."

"Fawkes has taken to his human form!" Hermione gasped, rushing up to stand beside Draco, "I thought that was only a legend! The books say a phoenix will take to their human form in times of great need, but they normally only appear to the one they bonded to." Draco tilted his head, only vaguely listening to Hermione, as he examined the man before him. Yes, now he could see the resemblance; the man had golden eyes, his nose was somewhat long and beak-like, and his hair-which reached the backs of his knees-was a mixture of blue, red and orange. In addition, he had a large pair of wings which Draco had originally taken to be a cape.

"How can you help me?" Draco asked, "Will you take me to Harry?"

"The wards will not permit you entrance," Fawkes replied, "They are currently too strong. No, I will tell you the location where Harry is located, and you will travel there this evening. I will make sure he is ready for your arrival. I need you to gather some items that will help protect Harry; Severus Snape-some of your battle potions will help greatly. Also, the horcrux potion."

"I will bring them immediately," Severus promised.

"What about Harry's invisibility cloak?" Ron asked.

"Yes," Fawkes agreed, "That will also be useful. Anything you wish for me to bring to Harry, leave it on top of the astronomy tower. I will be leaving in one hour." He plucked a feather from one of his wings and turned it into a piece of paper, which he handed to Draco; "When the time is right, the apparition coordinates will appear on this paper. I cannot say how long it will take, but it will happen tonight, so make sure you prepare." Fawkes wrapped his wings around him and resumed his natural form before anyone could respond; he let out a great cry and then vanished with a flash of fire.

***************Two hours later

"We can't all go," Hermione said, "This is a rescue mission, and the more people who go, the more likely it is we will get caught!" She glared at the group of teens who had once more gathered in the Room of Requirement; they had been waiting for over an hour, and most of that time was spent arguing.

"That is incorrect," Severus said as he entered the room with Sirius and Narcissa, "This is not a rescue mission; Fawkes suggested bringing along battle potions, which indicates that there will be fighting. I believe that tonight is the night-we will be going up against the Dark Lord and his followers."

"Yeah," Sirius nodded, "Remus went off to warn the rest of the Order; if we get overwhelmed they'll be standing by to help us."

"Of course, that does not mean you all have to come with us," Narcissa said, "It will be dangerous, and it would perhaps be best if some of you stayed behind. Luna-"

"The whiffle hammers are rampaging tonight," Luna said serenely, "and the blibbering humdingers have agreed to help confuse our enemies. I gave Neville some snufflefly powder too." Narcissa sighed, realizing that she could offer no argument to her niece's odd statements.

"I'll stay close to her, Mrs. Malfoy," Neville promised, "We all want to help Harry; we know it's dangerous, but sometimes the danger is worth it."

"We've stuck by Harry since first year, Hermione and me," Ron added, "and we're not going to sit out now."

"Each of you take a bag," Severus instructed, passing them around the room, "There are battle potions as well as healing potions in here; the bags are charmed to know what you need, so you will not have to search for them."

"Here," Hermione stood up next, passing around the disks that they had used on the cruise; she had made some extras for the Slytherins, "If you need to locate another member of the group, these will help. They are charmed so that no one else can use them." Narcissa was the next to stand, handing everyone a bracelet.

"These portkeys will return you to the infirmary," she said, "the activation word is "home". If you are injured return here immediately. Everyone needs to pick a partner and stay with them-_do not go off on your own. _If you come across the Dark-if you come across Voldemort, use the portkey immediately; you will not fight him, understand?"

There was a chorus of "Yes, Ma'am" and Narcissa nodded, then looked over at Draco, who was sitting by himself on the other side of the room. Draco had been quiet, and she knew her son was thinking about Harry; Narcissa wanted to comfort him, but she knew it would not be possible. The only thing that would comfort Draco would be holding Harry in his arms again. Suddenly, Draco got to his feet; his eyes were narrowed in determination as he said; "It's time."

**AN: The chapter is choppy, I know! I tried to smooth it out, but I just had a lot of trouble with it. Seems the closer I get to the end of the story, the harder it is to write. This is another short chapter; I was going to have a scene with Harry in it, but I decided to put that in the next chapter-which should be up by the next week since I have a good portion of it written. Hope you enjoyed it, and thank you to everyone who reviewed!**


	40. Chapter 39

"_You are a foolisssh mortal," _Nagini hissed as she watched Harry writhe in pain, _"Why mussst you anger Massster? Why do you not join him?"_

"_I will never join him," _Harry said weakly as he sat up, _"You massster iss evil and he hasss killed many people. He will sssoon get what he desservesss. I will ssstop him."_

"_You cannot, and you are foolisssh to try," _Nagini argued, _"You will sssee; Massster isss great. You will ressst. You ssshould not have angered him like you did. I will return with food."_ Nagini did not wait for a reply, but slithered to the door and then through it; Voldemort had spelled the door so that Nagini could go in and out as she pleased.

"Voldemort is not great," Harry muttered, crawling across the floor to the bed; he painstakingly pulled himself up and then collapsed on the soft mattress, "Voldemort is insane." He bit his lip against grying out as his muscles contracted in pain; this time Voldemort had held him under the cruciatus curse for ten minutes…then he did it another three times.

Harry had been Voldemort's prisoner for a week now, and Voldemort and Nagini were the only ones who ever visited him. Voldemort would spend a few hours with Harry everyday, alternating between promising him power in return for loyalty and cursing him. He used the cruciatus most often, but occaisionally he would use a cutting hex, or a bone crushing hex. With anything other than a crucio Voldemort eventually allowed him healing potions-he still hoped to make Harry join him and did not want a crippled follower. When he used the Cruciatus, however, Voldemort allowed him no healing potions; Harry had a feeling Voldemort wanted to make him just a little insane-enough so that he would agree to join the snake-face bastard.

Of course, Harry couldn't help but irritate the bastard; he probably wouldn't suffer nearly as much if he would stop calling him a half-blood. Voldie didn't like being called Tom either, or Riddle. For some reason known only to himself, Voldemort encouraged Nagini to spend time with Harry, and the large snake had taken a liking to him-even though she thought he was stupid for fighting against her master.

By now, Harry had been cursed so often that his muscles ached all the time, and his Occlumency shields had also been battered all to hell, so his scar often hurt. He had nightmares on a regular basis, and he wasn't sure which were real and which were false. Voldemort enjoyed sending him visions of torture sessions, and in some of those Harry's friends were the victims. He had never seen Draco in a vision though, and he suspected it was because Voldemort wanted to win Draco over to his side. If he promised to release Harry in return for access to the Goblin Realm, would Draco do it? Harry didn't think so, but he couldn't be completely sure.

Harry's thoughts, when he was alone, tended to revolve around escape plans and worries about his friends. Voldemort never gave him any information about the outside world, but he wouldn't know anything about what was going on inside Hogwarts anyway. Harry wondered if Theo was okay; did Dumbledore keep his promise and leave the school after Harry took the port key? Was Draco okay? He had seemed to be in a lot of pain; the room Harry was in had some books about powerful curses and the fiendfyre binding spell was supposed to be extremely painful-if left on for too long the flames would sink into a person's body and actually boil their blood. Draco hadn't been held under the curse for very long, so he should be okay, but…Harry still couldn't help but worry, even as he suffered from the after effects of his own curse.

Harry lay there for a long time, his muscles occasionally seizing up in pain, before finally falling into a fitful sleep. Even as his eyes slipped closed, Harry remained aware of his surroundings; many times in the past week Voldemort had waited until Harry was asleep to attack, and so he had learned to never let his guard down. In addition to his fears of being hit by an unexpected curse, he also resisted sleep in an effort to avoid the nightmares that frequently occurred. Harry was vaguely aware when a tray of food appeared, but it was several hours before he recovered enough to sit up and eat. One thing he could say for Voldemort-he fed Harry better than the Dursley's ever had; this time he had steak, roasted potatoes, corn, and soft, warm buttered rolls. For desert he was given a large helping of treacle tart, and his goblet automatically refilled with juice.

Once he was done eating Harry took a shower and then dressed in the plain black clothing that had been provided for him. Nagini had returned while he was in the shower, and she raised her head to watch him lazily for a moment before hissing out a warning-a grumpy, 'I'm tired so leave me alone' warning-and then closed her eyes again. Harry found himself smiling at her as he walked through the bedroom and out into the study, where he looked through the books available. He found that he actually enjoyed Nagini's company for the most part, and it saddened him to think that he would have to kill her in order to finally defeat Voldemort; Nagini wasn't as evil as he had previously believed, she was just loyal to the master who had raised her since birth.

Harry picked out a book on wandless offensive spells and settled down in a chair in front of the fireplace. Harry was able to do some wandless magic, but nothing strong enough to use against Voldemort. Perhaps, he thought, this book would help him acquire the skills he needed to escape. Unfortunately, the book was extremely technical and he had a hard time even getting through the first chapter.

"Stupid, useless book," he muttered angrily, tossing it aside, "Is there nothing useful in this room?" He thought for a moment, and then held out his hand; "Accio useful book!" Several books on the shelf across from the door vibrated, but none of them flew to his open hand. Harry scowled at the books, but his pouting was interrupted by a bright flash of flames, out of which Fawkes appeared.

"Fawkes!" Harry cried happily, "Can you get me out of here?" Fawkes responded with a soft trill, and dropped a bag at Harry's feet; he then flew across the room to sit on top of a bookcase. Harry gave Fawkes a curious look, and then focused on the bag; reaching inside, the first thing he pulled out was a letter with one of Hermione's locator disks attached. The letter had more than one type of handwriting on it, and Harry quickly read through it.

'_Harry,_

_No time for pleasantries; in case you didn't recognize it, the disk is the same one we used on the cruise ship and will let you locate anyone else who has one. The rest of us will be there at some point tonight, so you just have to hold out until then; be careful and wait for us."_

The next portion was written by Severus:

"_The small bag inside of this one contains potions that I created for battle use, as well as healing potions. In addition, I have included the completed horcrux potion-I recommend you take it immediately. Weasley has included the Sword of Gryffindor as well as your invisibility cloak, and I have included port keys-if you encounter any Death Eater's simply get them to touch the port key and it will transport them to warded rooms in the dungeons of Hogwarts. Be safe and do not do anything foolish."_

The final portion of the letter was written by Draco:

"_Lion-whatever you do keep yourself safe. I will be with you as soon as possible-if you risk yourself unnecessarily, I will make you suffer a pain deeper than any you have ever known."_

Harry smiled, relieved to know that Draco and his friends were safe, and folded the letter, noticing a small postscript on the outside;

"_You should use your invisibility cloak to observe the mating rituals of the rare and deadly Venomous Violets; they are abundant outside the manor and there will not be another chance to observe them for a hundred years. Make sure you tell me all about it! See you soon, Luna."_

Harry shook his head and put the letter in his pocket, then reached back into the bag, pulling out his invisibility cloak and the Sword of Gryffindor and setting them beside him. He found his wand next, and immediately secured it in his back pocket. Next he pulled out the small pouch which contained Severus' potions. He reached in the pouch and pulled out a small vial full of green potion-the same green as the killing curse. This, he knew was the horcrux potion; he had seen it when Severus made a test batch. He pulled the cork out of the vial and put it to his lips-

"Hey!" he cried as Fawkes swooped down and snatched the vial; "Come back here!" Harry ran after Fawkes as the phoenix flew into the bedroom, where Nagini had begun to stir. The giant snake spied Fawkes and let out an angry hiss-and Fawkes used that moment to drop the potion into Nagini's open mouth. "Fawkes-no!" Harry watched helplessly as Nagini swallowed the potion meant for him, and then the snake began thrashing on the floor. Fawkes let loose a string of light notes and then vanished in a flash of fire.

After Fawkes had gone, Harry stood in the doorway and watched as Nagini continued to thrash while the potion fought the horcrux inside her. It took a few more minutes, and then Nagini stilled on the carpet. Harry knelt next to her, and the snake lifted her head to look at him.

'_Harry Potter,' _Harry jumped when the words seemed to be spoken directly to his mind, '_Finally I am free. For far too long I have suffered from the dark soul within me. You are disappointed?"_

"I am glad you are free,"Harry replied out loud, "But now I do not know how to defeat your master."Nagini locked gazes with him, and Harry felt as if she was looking into his very soul and evaluating it. After several minutes during which he was unable to look away, Nagini gave a low hiss of approval and proceeded to share knowledge with him that was only known to one other person…

Harry waited for an hour to pass before he made his move; he secured the Sword of Gryffindor at his side, and the pouch of potions and port keys was tied to his belt loop. The invisibility cloak he had wrapped around his shoulders. Nagini slithered through the door first and he followed a moment later; the hallway was empty, and Harry had to wonder at the lack of guards, but he kept his questions to himself as he followed Nagini.

When they reached the end of the hallway, Harry saw that there were a few Death Eater's standing around and talking quietly. Harry paused for a moment, not sure how to proceed; he wanted to avoid detection for as long as possible, so attacking head-on would not be the best idea. Harry reached into the potions pouch and pulled out an unfamiliar potion; it was dark blue with silver specks. With a silent prayer that this would be useful, Harry removed the cork and threw the potion down the hallway; the vial broke when it hit the floor, and dark blue fumes rose up, surrounding the Death Eaters. All five were asleep within seconds, and Harry quickly moved to place the portkeys on their chests; as soon as a port key touched a Death Eater, that Death Eater vanished. With that taken care of, Harry moved down the hall and came to a stop outside of a room where Nagini was waiting. Harry drew his wand and cast a silencing spell before slowly opening the door; the witch inside was sound asleep, and Harry was able to toss the port key in the room. The port key-which was a ragged teddy bear-landed on the witch's outstretched hand and her eyes opened in alarm before she vanished.

The next twenty minutes were spent the same way; Nagini would stand outside certain rooms, and Harry would send those inside to Hogwarts via port key. He met a few Death Eater's in the hallway, but those were easily dealt with as well; he hadn't had to use any more potions yet, and all of the Death Eater's he had come across so far had been too startled by the sight of him to put up a fight.

They finally finished with the rooms in the East Wing, and now Harry followed Nagini to the West Wing, where he knew the targets would be more difficult.

'_You will not need to fight them,' _Nagini's voice whispered in his mind, _'Use the items sent by your friends to trap your enemies and their power within their rooms. You must deal with my master and allow your friends to deal with the rest.'_

Harry frowned at Nagini, not liking the thought of leaving his friends to fight the likes of Bellatrix, Greyback, and the other more powerful Death Eater's. As he thought about it, though, he realized that really was the best option; his friends would be here soon, and he needed to confront Voldemort before they arrived if he was to succeed in the plan he and Nagini had come up with. With a quiet sigh, Harry reached into his pouch and pulled out several small, spherical items; they looked like marbles and were as small as a marble too.

The marbles were a new creation by Fred and George, with help from Sirius; they were created to trap and enemy in a certain area and block access to their magic. In addition, the marbles would make it impossible for someone to locate the person trapped by the spell; the only bad thing was that, according to the note included by Sirius, the spell only lasted an hour, which meant his friends would likely have to deal with the Death Eater's.

Harry walked down the hallway and placed a marble in front of each door. When he was done, Harry walked back to the beginning of the hallway where Nagini had remained waiting for him and pulled out a final marble-type-thingy; this one was bigger than the others, and was the activation for the spell. Harry threw the marble on the floor and stepped on it; there was no sound, but each of the marbles in the hallway flashed bright white for a moment, and then an almost transparent barrier appeared in front of each door. Harry turned to Nagini and followed her as she slithered down the hall; now it was time to face Voldemort-hopefully for the last time.

"Hey Tom," Harry greeted casually as he pushed open the doors to the room he had seen on his first day in the manor, "It's a little late at night for plotting evil deeds, don't you think?" He dropped his invisibility cloak on the floor and stepped towards the table where Voldemort was sitting.

"Harry Potter," Voldemort narrowed his already snake-like eyes, "How did you escape from your room? You should not have been able to get past my wards without a wand."

"Yes, well, luckily for me someone came by and dropped off my wand," Harry replied, casually twirling said wand between his fingers-Draco had taught him how to do that- "Left me a few other things as well which came in very useful for getting rid of your followers."

"What?" Voldemort's voice came out as an angry hiss, "You could not have defeated all of my followers. Lestrange!" A door behind Voldemort's chair opened, and a man Harry recognized as Rodolphus Lestrange stepped into the room.

"My Lord," Lestrange knelt, bowing his head, "How may I serve you?" Voldemort didn't reply, but grabbed his arm and pressed the tip of his wand to Lestrange's dark mark. Lestrange hissed in pain, but otherwise held completely still.

"Now we shall see, Harry Potter," Voldemort said, "My followers will arrive shortly, and you will learn not to challenge me. Perhaps this time I shall bind your magic…or, I could always lock you in a room full of boggarts once I have taken your wand from you; I wonder what your greatest fear is?"

"I already know your greatest fear Tom," Harry taunted, "It's for your followers to discover that you really are a half-blood, and that your mother had to potion your Muggle father in order to even have you." The last part was just a guess, but it seemed to hit a nerve, as Voldemort aimed his wand.

"Crucio!"

"Protego!" Harry shouted; the shield flared up just in time, and Harry quickly moved to the side to avoid another curse, "This should be interesting; I wonder what we'll see the next time our wands connect? Think you'll get to have another reunion with your past victims? I hope so; they deserve to have a little revenge, don't you think?"

"You are a foolish boy," Voldemort replied, having calmed down somewhat, "I have already obtained another wand; the bond between our original wands was a weakness, and I do not tolerate weakness."

"How do you feel about lateness?" Harry asked innocently, "Because it seems your followers are procrastinating a bit; the one who stay here should have at least shown up by now don't you think? Unless, of course, I was telling the truth about defeating them. What do you think?" Voldemort glared at Harry, but it was true; not one of his loyal Death Eater's had come at his call.

"Lestrange-why don't you entertain our guest?" Voldemort smiled cruelly, "It seems you must redeem your families honor."

"My pleasure, My Lord," Lestrange replied as he got to his feet, "Rules?"

"As long as he survives I do not care what you do," Voldemort said, relaxing in his chair, "Do not disappoint me, Lestrange." Lestrange didn't reply as he drew his wand and faced Harry.

"Oh, are we dueling now?" Harry asked, "Because, you should know Snape trained me in dueling techniques-" Harry broke off and dodged the silent spell Lestrange sent his way, "-didn't pick up silent spells too well though, although I can do some. Expelliarmus!" Lestrange and Voldemort both laughed at that, as the spell failed to separate Lestrange from his wand. A few seconds later, however, Lestrange stopped laughing as Harry threw something at him; frowning, Lestrange picked up the item and then smirked.

"Really, Potter? You think to defeat me with a-" at that moment the object and Lestrange both disappeared.

"Well, I suppose a rubber duck is a bit strange for a port key," Harry shrugged, "but it's not like I chose the items."

"Trickery, Potter?" Voldemort asked, "Not very noble of you."

"What did you expect?" Harry laughed, "My fiancé is a Slytherin, after all. So, it looks like that was the last of your minions; now what?"

"Crucio!" Voldemort's response caught Harry off guard, even though he knew he should have been expecting it; as a result, he now lay screaming on the floor, writhing under the pain of Voldemort's favorite curse. After a few minutes had passed Voldemort lifted the curse, and Harry immediately pointed his wand.

"Sectumsempra!" the curse missed, and Voldemort retaliated with a silent curse that released a shot of jet-black magic at Harry, who just barely managed to dodge. "Flagrate!" Harry shouted, and Voldemort looked on in amusement as Harry drew fiery letters in the air.

"You think to defeat me with-" Voldemort hissed in anger when he read the message floating between them.

'I am Lord Voldemort. I am a half-blood hypocrite who failed to kill a helpless infant. My mother had to potion my father to conceive me. I have failed at all I have attempted, and I have been repeatedly beaten by a boy not even of age. I am Lord Voldemort.'

The letters in the last part of the paragraph were continuously rearranging themselves; one moment they spelled out 'I am Lord Voldemort' and the next the read 'Tom Marvolo Riddle'.

"Oh, by the way, did I mention I got rid of your last horcrux?" Harry asked nonchalantly, "You weren't too attached to Nagini, were you?" Nagini was actually in a room down the hall; after leading him to Voldemort he had insisted she hide so that none of his friends tried to attack her. Not knowing this, Voldemort paled even further in fury; he seemed to forget his plan to keep Harry alive and pointed his wand at the younger wizard. A jet of bright green light shot towards Harry, and he lowered his wand to his side; he heard the doors slam open behind him and several people screamed his name, then the light hit and –

**AN: Haha! See; I told you it would be up this week! Chapter is still a little on the short side, I suppose, but I wanted it to be purely about Harry and his confrontation with Voldie. Why did Fawkes give the potion to Nagini? That, my friends, is a secret…at least for now. I'm not very good at writing fights, so I hope this wasn't too bad. As for the cliffie…I'll post the next chapter as soon as possible. Thank you for all the reviews; I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Until next time!**


	41. Chapter 40

_Voldemort paled even further in fury; he seemed to forget his plan to keep Harry alive and pointed his wand at the younger wizard. A jet of bright green light shot towards Harry, and he lowered his wand to his side; he heard the doors slam open behind him and several people screamed his name, then the light hit and –_

The light hit Harry, and his world went dark; he could no longer hear his friends, and he felt no pain from the killing curse. In fact, everything had happened as Nagini said it would; any minute now he should hear the shouts again and feel the pain of surviving the curse again…Only, that didn't happen. Instead, Harry smelled fresh cut grass and hear the sound of water running over rocks. Frowning, Harry opened his eyes and pushed himself to his knees; looking around he saw that he was in an unfamiliar place.

Harry was standing in what appeared to be a garden; there were numerous flowers around him in every color, as well as a few trees for shade. A babbling brook ran across the garden, going under the large stone wall that encircled it. Harry walked over to the wall and began searching for a door, but the wall appeared to be perfectly smooth with no gate or door, and no hand holds to climb over it. Harry checked the place where the brook came under the wall, but the opening was too small for Harry to fit through, and he couldn't see anything beyond it.

"What on earth are you doing, love?" The question had Harry jumping to his feet and spinning around-only to nearly fall over when he saw who was standing behind him. The speaker was a young woman with hair that shone like rubies in the sunshine and eyes an even more brilliant green than his own. Standing next to her was a man with the same unruly black hair he saw in the mirror every day, wearing a pair of round spectacles that greatly resembled his own.

"Mum? Dad?" Harry whispered, unable to believe his eyes.

"Yes, love," Lily smiled, "It's us." She moved forward and pulled Harry into a hug, and after a moment he responded, wrapping his arms tight around her waist and burying his head in her shoulder. "Oh, Harry! We are so proud of you!"

"Very proud," James agreed reaching around his wife to place a hand on Harry's shoulder, "You've been put through so much, but you've stayed strong through it all, and you never gave into the darkness."

"How could I?" Harry asked, pulling back a little from his mom's embrace, "Not when you both gave your lives to protect me; I could never give into the evil that took you from me." Lily's smile grew brighter, and she took Harry by the hand, leading both him and James over to a bench that Harry hadn't noticed before; this reminded him of the concern he'd had earlier.

"Where are we?" he asked, "Am I dead?"

"In a way," Lily replied, "When the curse hit you it attacked the piece of Voldemort's soul within you; the hatred Voldemort felt when he cast the curse was so strong that it not only destroyed the remaining piece of his soul, but it damaged you as well. Under normal circumstances you would be dead, with no choice but to move on-"

"But your circumstances are never normal," James interrupted with a grin, "You just had to go and get engaged to a faerie prince, didn't you?"

"Hey, not my fault!" Harry protested, "No one told me the Goblin King was real; how was I supposed to know Draco would show up and force me to take on the challenge in exchange for freeing Dudley?"

"But those weren't the terms, were they?" Lily's smile turned mischievous, "He sent Dudley back, and you wagered your own freedom on the challenge; no one forced you to do that."

"And then you tricked yourself into losing," Harry felt his face flush as James laughed at him, "That was a hoot to watch!"

"Stop teasing, James," Lily reproached him gently, "We still have more to tell him."

"Right," James said, a grin still on his face, "So, since you're betrothed to Draco Malfoy a sort of bond has begun to form between you; the bond isn't as solid as it will be after you actually get married, but it's strong enough so that you can go back if you choose. Or, you can stay here."

"I wouldn't recommend staying," Lily said, "As much as I would love to spend more time with you, I believe your fiancé might be less than understanding."

"He'd find a way to bring me back and make me regret leaving him," Harry agreed, smiling as he thought about the blond waiting for him; then a thought occurred to Harry, and he frowned. "Then again, I'm probably going to be in big trouble for not telling him my plan. Maybe it would be safer for me to stay here?" Lily and James both shook their heads, smiling at their son.

"No, Love," Lily said, "It isn't your time yet. You still have so much life to live…"

"Not to mention you have to make sure the Potter name continues," James added, smirking at his son, "Can't wait to see you after you get pregnant!"

"What? Who said I was getting pregnant?" Harry demanded, "I mean, I know I can, but maybe I'd rather adopt!"

"Yeah right!" James laughed, "You're too much like your mom; deny it all you like, but you know you're looking forward to having your own baby someday." Harry glared at his father for a moment before dropping his gaze.

"So?" he pouted, "Maybe I would like to have a baby someday, but that doesn't mean I like the thought of being pregnant!"

"It's not nearly as scary as it seems," Lily told him, "When it happens you'll be ready." Lily frowned and looked up, then turned to look behind them before facing Harry once more with a watery smile. "It looks like our time is up," she said, "the doorway back has appeared." Harry looked behind him and saw that some of the stones in the wall had begun to melt away, forming an arch through which he could see a distorted view of his friends.

"I-I don't want to leave Draco," Harry said, "but I don't want to leave you two either."

"You won't," Lily said, standing and pulling Harry with her, "You'll always be in our hearts, and we'll always be with you." She gave Harry a hug and a kiss on the cheek, and then stepped back so that James could say goodbye.

"You really have made us proud," James said, pulling Harry into a tight hug, "No matter what you do, we'll always be proud of you…we'll always love you." He released Harry and gave him a gentle push towards the newly formed archway.

"I love you too," Harry said, "Bye Mum; bye Dad." Harry walked to the archway, and then turned back to look at them one last time; the picture was one right out of his memory-Lily smiling with tears running down her face, while James had an arm around her waist, exactly as they had been the first time Harry had seen his parents in the Mirror of Erised. The image made Harry smile, and gave him the strength he needed to turn around and step through the archway….

When the apparition coordinates had appeared, Draco found he wasn't altogether shocked to find that they were for Malfoy Manor. The group had landed in the upstairs hallway, and Narcissa and Draco had split everyone into two groups to search the living quarters. They had come across many rooms which looked as though the occupant had left suddenly, and then they came upon several rooms that had wards around the doors. These rooms contained the higher level Death Eater's, including Greyback and his aunt Bellatrix. Sirius had stepped forward to take care of Bellatrix, dueling her with all his fury at having fallen to her wand the previous year; Bellatrix had gotten cocky, and Sirius was able to kill her. Severus took care of Greyback by throwing a potion he had made himself-it was concentrated silver and wolfs bane, and had killed the werewolf almost instantly.

Once they had checked every room, the group had made their way downstairs and eventually to the ballroom, which is where they were now. Draco stopped just outside the large doors and turned to address the entire group, which consisted of the Ron, Ginny and the twins, Hermione, Neville, Pansy, Blaise, Luna, Narcissa, Sirius and Severus. "Okay, right through here is the ballroom; they'll probably be inside, so we need to be ready."

Draco pushed open the doors just in time to see Voldemort point his wand at Harry.

"No! Harry!" Draco cried, rushing into the room as a jet of green light shot towards his fiancé; the rest of the group followed, all crying out for Harry, but it was too late. Draco watched helplessly as the green light hit Harry, encasing him in a sickly green glow, before rebounding back on Voldemort; Voldemort screamed, his body turning to ash, but all Draco could see was Harry-his Harry-falling to the floor, those once-brilliant green eyes now wide and lifeless. "Harry!" He choked out; falling to his knees, Draco pulled the brunet to him and bowed his head to hide his tears.

"Oh, Harry!" He heard Hermione's heart-broken cry as she fell down opposite him, reaching out to place a shaking hand over Harry's chest. He heard Hermione start to cry, and reached out a hand; Hermione grasped it tightly, even as Ron sank down and wrapped her in a tight embrace. Sirius was silent as he too knelt on the ground near his godson, reaching out to take one of Harry's lifeless hands in his own. Narcissa knelt behind Draco, hugging him from behind and reaching out with one hand to caress Harry's dark locks.

Draco was vaguely aware that the twins, Neville, Ginny, Pansy and Blaise were all standing a little further back, while Severus was walking over to the fallen Voldemort-or rather, the pile of ashes that had once been the most powerful dark wizard of their time. Luna was-Luna was spinning around in circles and singing:

"Harry killed the wizard-the dark lord Voldemort. Why? Because, because, because, because, because…all the horrible things he did. Ding dong, this wizard's dead-the curse exploded his head!"

"How can you sound so happy?" Pansy demanded, "Harry is dead! I thought he was your friend!"

"Hmm?" Luna tilted her head curiously, "Of course Harry is my friend; he was the first friend I ever had. The blibbering humdingers said he'll be back though, so I'm not sad. Really, if you just learned to listen you wouldn't be so upset. I wonder, do you think Voldemort would have melted if we had just poured water on him? After all, it worked for Dorothy."

"Luna," Neville began hesitantly, "Harry is-he really is dead; he isn't breathing."

"Breathing is over-rated," Luna said dismissively; Draco tried to tune the conversation out, but he couldn't stop the anger he felt at Luna's casual attitude; was everything a joke to her?

"Calm down, darling," Narcissa murmured, "She doesn't mean anything by it; Luna handles things differently than the rest of us. When she acknowledges what truly happened she'll be as heartbroken as the rest of us."

Narcissa kissed the top of his head, and Draco nodded; he couldn't really blame Luna for her denial-he wished he could pretend Harry was still alive.

"Why?" he whispered, cupping Harry's face with his hand, "Why did you do it? You promised to come back to me!" Draco tried to hold back his tears, but it was a fruitless battle as one escaped and splashed down on Harry's cheek.

"We should get him back to Hogwarts," Sirius said, his voice devoid of any emotions, "He-we shouldn't keep him here." Draco nodded, but neither of them made any effort to move.

"I can set a port key to take us back to the school," Severus said as he joined them.

"Harry hated port keys," Ginny sniffled, "Ever since-ever since Cedric he can't stand them."

"It's the fastest way to get back to school though," Hermione said, "If we apparated we'd have to walk in from Hogsmeade."

"The order will be here soon," Narcissa said, "We need to get him out of here before they arrive."

"I'll open a portal," Draco said, "I can carry him through." Sirius nodded his agreement and slowly stood up; Hermione and Ron stood as well, and Draco felt his mother step away. Draco looked down at his fiancé, marveling at how warm he still was. He closed his eyes and leaned in to kiss Harry on the forehead, and then started to let his hand drop away from the brunet's face, only to gasp in shock as another hand held his in place. Draco's eyes shot open, only for his gaze to be captured by the brilliant emerald eyes he had fallen in love with.

"Harry?" he whispered, unable to believe what he was seeing.

"Draco," Harry replied with a smile, "I promised you I'd come back." Draco choked on a laugh and pulled Harry into a tight hug, reveling in the feeling of those strong arms holding him just as tightly.

"Harry!" he heard a shout from behind them, but he wasn't sure who it came from. "Oh my God! Harry's alive!" "He's alive!" "Harry!" Everyone rushed over to the two boys, each person trying to hug Harry and assure themselves that he really was alive; this was made a bit difficult by the fact that Draco refused to let his fiancé go-not even Sirius could pry Draco away from his godson.

"I _told you_ the blibbering humdingers said he was alive!" Luna sounded irritated as she watched everyone crying tears of joy at the return of their friend, "Why doesn't anyone ever listen to me?"

"Don't be mad, Luna," Harry grinned, "Not everyone can be as clever as you; that's why you're in Ravenclaw." Luna beamed at Harry and pushed through the crowd of friends to kiss him on the cheek.

"You would have believed me," she said, "You always do, even if you can't admit it. Oh, that reminds me; Remus and the Order are on their way."

"Then we really should leave," Severus said, pulling Sirius away from the boys, "Do you still wish to open a portal, Draco?"

"Yes," Draco confirmed, "If everyone will Back Off!" Their friends laughed and moved away, although Pansy scowled and slapped Draco upside the head as she did so. Draco got to his feet and pulled Harry up as well, and he retained the other boys hand as he opened a portal leading to their rooms.

"You can all leave now," Draco said, "Sorry, Mother; Harry can tell his story later-I want him to myself for now."

"Harry needs to see Madame Pomfrey," Narcissa told her son, "We can all accompany him to the hospital wing, and he can tell his story while Madame checks him over. Once she clears Harry, then you can have him all to yourself."

"Yes, Mother," Draco agreed, although reluctantly, "Come on Harry; the sooner we get this over with the sooner we can get back to our rooms." Draco began pulling Harry towards the door, only to notice that the brunet was limping. He stopped and faced Harry, looking him over from head to toe and frowned; Harry was pale and shaking, and his face was covered in sweat. Draco placed a hand on his forehead and found that it was warmer than it should be.

"I'm fine," Harry rushed to speak before Draco could say anything, "I was cursed a few times, but Madame Pomfrey can fix me right up, so let's go." Harry began walking again, only to stop short when Draco refused to move.

"I don't think so," the blond scowled, "You have a fever, you're limping, and you probably have nerve damage from being held under crucio. Hermione-transfigure a bed for me, would you? Madame Pomfrey can come here to check you over. If you try to argue with me, I will not hesitate to put you in a body bind." Harry pouted, but allowed Draco to lead him over to the bed Hermione had transfigured out of one of the chairs in the living room. The rest of the group made themselves comfortable, sitting on the couch, loveseat, the one remaining chair, as well as the floor.

"I'll go get Madam Pomfrey," Severus said, "and afterwards I will return to the manor to meet with Remus and the Order so that I can assure them Harry is safe. When I return, you will fill me in on what happened, Mutt."

"Of course, Sev," Sirius grinned.

"Harry…" Severus hesitated at the door and then said, "I am glad you survived. If you ever do something so foolish again, I _will_ use you as potions ingredients." The potions master slipped through the door before Harry could respond.

"Now, Harry," Narcissa began, "I will not ask you how you are doing because I know you would say you are fine, when you obviously are not. Do you want any food or something to drink? Or would you like to go ahead and tell us what happened."

"I'd like to just tell you what happened," Harry replied, "I'm not really hungry right now. Okay, so I guess I need to start with the port key; it took me to…wherever I was, and Nagini was there. She led me to Voldemort, and I told him about me being a horcrux. He, of course, took me prisoner…"

Harry spent the next hour telling his story, only pausing to answer Madame Pomfrey's questions when she came in to examine him. Pomfrey stayed after she checked him over, and after he finished talking she ran another diagnostic scan; as Draco told his story, she began making a list of potions she wanted Harry to take, and then she examined Draco as well, after scolding him for not coming to see her as soon as he arrived back at the school.

"Well, you appear to be healthy, Mr. Malfoy," Pomfrey admitted reluctantly, "You are very lucky Severus was able to heal you. As for you, Mr. Potter-you do have some nerve damage from the cruciatus; you will take a potion for the next week in order to repair the nerve damage. In addition, your magical core is weakened again, however that will repair itself over time; you simply need to avoid using complex spells for the next few days. I have prescribed a few other potions for you-pain relief and sleeping potions-which you are to take as needed. I will leave the list for Severus; he should be able to brew them for you within a day or so. Now, I need to get back and check on Minerva; I would advise everyone except for Draco to leave so that Harry can get his rest." Pomfrey began walking towards the door, and then paused, looking back at the brunet pouting on the bed; "I am very happy to see that you are alright, Harry dear." She smiled at him and then left the room.

"The rest of us shall take our leave as well," Narcissa said, motioning for everyone to leave, "I'm glad to have you back, Harry." She kissed him on the forehead, then kissed Draco as well; "Make sure he rests, darling." Narcissa moved over to the door to wait for everyone else.

"Don't you ever scare me like that again Pup," Sirius said, giving Harry a tight hug, "I thought I'd lost you forever."

"Sorry, Siri," Harry said, "I'll try not to do it again."

"You _won't _do it again," Sirius corrected with a glare, "I'm going to depend on Draco to make sure of it."

"Oh, Harry and I will be having a nice, long talk about reckless behavior," Draco assured him, and Sirius nodded, moving to join Narcissa.

Hermione and Ron were next, Hermione crying and Ron grinning at Harry, then the twins told Harry they would want more details about how their products worked later. Pansy, Blaise and Ginny said their good-byes, and then Neville and Luna.

"Fawkes will bring her to you later," Luna whispered to Harry, "So make sure you have somewhere for her to sleep."

"Who is Fawkes supposed to be bringing?" Draco asked as their friends and family left them alone.

"Oh, probably Nagini," Harry replied, "Remember I told you she helped me? She's not evil now that the horcrux is gone."

"You are very lucky that plan of hers worked," Draco glared at his fiancé, "If you had truly died I would have followed you and made you regret it. If you ever pull something like that again-"

"I won't!" Harry interrupted, "I promise, Dray; I would have told you the plan, but there really wasn't enough time."

"Well, perhaps I shall just have to stay by your side from now on," Draco said, "At least until Dumbledore is gone."

"I think I would kill you," Harry commented, "Being with you-with anyone-twenty-four hours a day would probably drive me mental. Wasn't something mentioned about getting some sleep?"

"Yes," Draco said, "Want to head upstairs, or sleep on this transfigured bed?"

"Mm, upstairs, I think," Harry yawned; Draco stood and took Harry by the hand, helping him stand and then the two made their way upstairs, "I could really use a shower, but I think I'd fall asleep."

"How about a cleaning spell?" Draco suggested, casting a quick spell on both of them, "That should do until tomorrow." The two boys changed into their pajamas, and then crawled into bed, Harry curling in close to Draco's side, his head on the blonds shoulder.

"I've missed this," Harry commented softly, "I've missed you, Dray."

"I missed you too," Draco replied, kissing the top of Harry's head, "And, once we've had a chance to rest, I'm going to show you just how much I missed you." Harry hummed sleepily, rubbing his cheek against Draco's shoulder.

"Yeah," he said, "tomorrow…tomorrow you can show me." Draco's only response was to tighten his arm around Harry, and soon the two had fallen into a peaceful sleep, content in the fact that they were together once more, and at least one of their enemies had been beat. Everything else, they decided, was a problem for another day.

**AN: Just wanted to give everyone an update; After a lot of struggling to write a new chapter, I have decided to end the story here, at least for now. There will be a sequel-I promise!-but I need time to organize things and plan what comes next. Thank you to all my wonderful reviewers, and I hope to see you all in the sequel. Until next time!**


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